Cisco Unified Communications Products Remote Code Execution Vulnerability
Affects Cisco Unified Communications Manager, IM and Presence Service, and Unity Connection regardless of device configuration. CVSS scores it 8.2 (high), and the checked facts list no vendor rating or fixed release.
- Published
- Last modified
- Where the record stands: published, rejected by its publisher, or superseded by another id.What do these mean? →
- published
- Whether CISA lists it in its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog: proof that attackers are using it.What do these mean? →
- Listed in CISA KEV
- How many real-world setups can hit the bug, from the vendor's advisory and CISA data. It does not know your setup.What do these mean? →
- Actively exploited
- Whether working attack code is public (Exploit-DB, Metasploit, Nuclei or GitHub). Public code makes attacks easier.What do these mean? →
- None on Exploit-DB, Metasploit or GitHub
Summary
Cisco Unified Communications Manager, Unified CM Session Management Edition, Unified CM IM & Presence Service, Cisco Unity Connection, and Cisco Webex Calling Dedicated Instance are affected. An unauthenticated remote attacker could send crafted HTTP requests to the web management interface to run arbitrary commands on the underlying operating system and potentially gain root-level control of the device.
Summarized by anthropic/claude-haiku-5.5. Verify details against the original sources.
Read the original description
A vulnerability in Cisco Unified Communications Manager (Unified CM), Cisco Unified Communications Manager Session Management Edition (Unified CM SME), Cisco Unified Communications Manager IM & Presence Service (Unified CM IM&P), Cisco Unity Connection, and Cisco Webex Calling Dedicated Instance could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to execute arbitrary commands on the underlying operating system of an affected device. This vulnerability is due to improper validation of user-supplied input in HTTP requests. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a sequence of crafted HTTP requests to the web-based management interface of an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to obtain user-level access to the underlying operating system and then elevate privileges to root. Note: Cisco has assigned this security advisory a Security Impact Rating (SIR) of Critical rather than High as the score indicates. The reason is that exploitation of this vulnerability could result in an attacker elevating privileges to root.
Timeline
- Added to CISA KEV
CISA has evidence of exploitation in the wild
- CVE published
- CISA remediation deadline
Due date for US federal agencies to patch
- Record last updated
Affected versions
- Cisco Cisco Unified Communications Manager
12.5(1)SU2, 12.5(1)SU1, 12.5(1), 12.5(1)SU3, 12.5(1)SU4, 14, 12.5(1)SU5, 14SU1, 12.5(1)SU6, 14SU2, 12.5(1)SU7, 12.5(1)SU7a, 14SU3, 12.5(1)SU8, 12.5(1)SU8a, 15, 15SU1, 14SU4, 14SU4a, 15SU1a, 12.5(1)SU9, 15SU2, 15.0.1.13010-1, 15.0.1.13011-1, 15.0.1.13012-1, 15.0.1.13013-1, 15.0.1.13014-1, 15.0.1.13015-1, 15.0.1.13016-1, 15.0.1.13017-1, and 1 more
- Cisco Cisco Unified Communications Manager IM and Presence Service
12.5(1), 12.5(1)SU1, 12.5(1)SU2, 12.5(1)SU3, 12.5(1)SU4, 14, 12.5(1)SU5, 14SU1, 12.5(1)SU6, 14SU2, 14SU2a, 12.5(1)SU7, 14SU3, 12.5(1)SU8, 15, 15SU1, 14SU4, 12.5(1)SU9, 15SU2, 15SU3
- Cisco Cisco Unity Connection
12.5(1), 12.5(1)SU1, 12.5(1)SU2, 12.5(1)SU3, 12.5(1)SU4, 14, 12.5(1)SU5, 14SU1, 12.5(1)SU6, 14SU2, 12.5(1)SU7, 14SU3, 12.5(1)SU8, 14SU3a, 12.5(1)SU8a, 15, 15SU1, 14SU4, 12.5(1)SU9, 15SU2, 15SU3
References 1
sec.cloudapps.cisco.com
Questions about CVE-2026-20045
What does this mean?
An unauthenticated remote attacker could run arbitrary commands on the underlying operating system of an affected device. The attacker could start with user-level access and then raise privileges to root.Source: sec.cloudapps.cisco.com
Am I affected, and how do I check?
The checked facts list Cisco Unified Communications Manager, Unified CM IM and Presence Service, and Unity Connection, regardless of device configuration. The facts do not give affected version ranges, so check the product name and version against Cisco's advisory.Source: sec.cloudapps.cisco.com
What should I do about it?
The checked facts do not name a fixed release, so the upgrade target is not known from these facts. Check Cisco's advisory for the fixed version of your product.Source: sec.cloudapps.cisco.com
Is it being exploited?
Yes. CISA added it to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 2026-01-21, which means it has evidence of attacks. No public exploit code is tracked.Source: cisa.gov, cve.now feed data
What if there's no patch?
The checked facts do not describe a workaround or mitigation. Check Cisco's advisory for any interim guidance while no fix is available.Source: sec.cloudapps.cisco.com