CVE-2025-20312: Cisco IOS XE Software · Infinite Loop
Affects Cisco IOS XE SoftwareSource CVE Database V5
Not known to be exploited · CVSS 7.7 High.
Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 08:30 UTC
- EPSS
- 0.3% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 33% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:HExploitation evidence
Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 24 Sep 2025
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponised: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors
A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 26 Oct 2026.
What to do
Affected software
| Product | Affected | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
| Cisco Cisco IOS XE Software | Affected
| Fixed in– |
AI-suggested
European organizations should implement the following specific mitigations: 1) Immediately inventory all Cisco IOS XE devices to identify those running affected versions. 2) Apply Cisco’s security patches or updates as soon as they become available for the affected versions. 3) Restrict SNMP access to trusted management networks only, using access control lists (ACLs) and network segmentation to limit exposure. 4) Enforce strong SNMP community strings and SNMPv3 user credentials, including regular rotation and complexity requirements. 5) Monitor SNMP traffic for anomalous or malformed requests that could indicate exploitation attempts. 6) Implement network-level intrusion detection/prevention systems (IDS/IPS) with signatures or heuristics for SNMP anomalies. 7) Consider disabling SNMP on devices where it is not strictly necessary or replacing SNMP with more secure management protocols. 8) Conduct regular security audits and penetration testing focused on network management interfaces. 9) Prepare incident response plans specifically addressing potential DoS conditions caused by network device reloads to minimize downtime.
Description
A vulnerability in the Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) subsystem of Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to cause a denial of service (DoS) condition on an affected device. This vulnerability is due to improper error handling when parsing a specific SNMP request. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a specific SNMP request to an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to cause the device to reload unexpectedly, resulting in a DoS condition. This vulnerability affects SNMP versions 1, 2c, and 3. To exploit this vulnerability through SNMPv2c or earlier, the attacker must know a valid read-write or read-only SNMP community string for the affected system. To exploit this vulnerability through SNMPv3, the attacker must have valid SNMP user credentials for the affected system.