CVE-2026-20110: Incorrect Privilege Assignment in Cisco Cisco IOS XE Software
CVE-2026-20110 is a medium severity vulnerability in Cisco IOS XE Software where incorrect privilege assignment allows a low-privileged authenticated local user to execute the 'start maintenance' command. Exploiting this vulnerability causes the device to enter maintenance mode, shutting down interfaces and resulting in a denial of service (DoS). Recovery requires a device administrator to manually issue the 'stop maintenance' command to restore normal operations.
AI Analysis
Technical Summary
This vulnerability arises from improper privilege assignment in the CLI of Cisco IOS XE Software, specifically related to the 'start maintenance' command. A low-privileged authenticated user with access to the management CLI can exploit this flaw to put the device into maintenance mode, which disables network interfaces and causes a DoS condition. The issue affects a wide range of Cisco IOS XE versions from 16.6.1 through 17.18.1a. The vulnerability does not impact confidentiality or integrity but results in availability disruption. The CVSS 3.1 base score is 6.5, reflecting local attack vector, low attack complexity, low privileges required, no user interaction, scope change, and high impact on availability.
Potential Impact
Successful exploitation results in a denial of service by shutting down device interfaces through maintenance mode activation. This disrupts network availability but does not affect confidentiality or integrity. The device remains operational but with disabled interfaces until an administrator intervenes to stop maintenance mode.
Mitigation Recommendations
Patch status is not yet confirmed — check the vendor advisory for current remediation guidance. Until an official fix is available, restrict CLI access to trusted administrators only and monitor for unauthorized use of the 'start maintenance' command. In case of exploitation, a device administrator can restore normal operations by executing the 'stop maintenance' command.
CVE-2026-20110: Incorrect Privilege Assignment in Cisco Cisco IOS XE Software
Description
CVE-2026-20110 is a medium severity vulnerability in Cisco IOS XE Software where incorrect privilege assignment allows a low-privileged authenticated local user to execute the 'start maintenance' command. Exploiting this vulnerability causes the device to enter maintenance mode, shutting down interfaces and resulting in a denial of service (DoS). Recovery requires a device administrator to manually issue the 'stop maintenance' command to restore normal operations.
AI-Powered Analysis
Machine-generated threat intelligence
Technical Analysis
This vulnerability arises from improper privilege assignment in the CLI of Cisco IOS XE Software, specifically related to the 'start maintenance' command. A low-privileged authenticated user with access to the management CLI can exploit this flaw to put the device into maintenance mode, which disables network interfaces and causes a DoS condition. The issue affects a wide range of Cisco IOS XE versions from 16.6.1 through 17.18.1a. The vulnerability does not impact confidentiality or integrity but results in availability disruption. The CVSS 3.1 base score is 6.5, reflecting local attack vector, low attack complexity, low privileges required, no user interaction, scope change, and high impact on availability.
Potential Impact
Successful exploitation results in a denial of service by shutting down device interfaces through maintenance mode activation. This disrupts network availability but does not affect confidentiality or integrity. The device remains operational but with disabled interfaces until an administrator intervenes to stop maintenance mode.
Mitigation Recommendations
Patch status is not yet confirmed — check the vendor advisory for current remediation guidance. Until an official fix is available, restrict CLI access to trusted administrators only and monitor for unauthorized use of the 'start maintenance' command. In case of exploitation, a device administrator can restore normal operations by executing the 'stop maintenance' command.
Technical Details
- Data Version
- 5.2
- Assigner Short Name
- cisco
- Date Reserved
- 2025-10-08T11:59:15.374Z
- Cvss Version
- 3.1
- State
- PUBLISHED
Threat ID: 69c40a64f4197a8e3b699902
Added to database: 3/25/2026, 4:16:36 PM
Last enriched: 4/3/2026, 1:37:49 PM
Last updated: 5/10/2026, 1:31:25 AM
Views: 91
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