CVE-2026-20029
Published: April 11, 2026
Official Description
A vulnerability in the licensing features of Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) and Cisco ISE Passive Identity Connector (ISE-PIC) could allow an authenticated, remote attacker with administrative privileges to gain access to sensitive information.
This vulnerability is due to improper parsing of XML that is processed by the web-based management interface of Cisco ISE and Cisco ISE-PIC. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by uploading a malicious file to the application. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to read arbitrary files from the underlying operating system that could include sensitive data that should otherwise be inaccessible even to administrators. To exploit this vulnerability, the attacker must have valid administrative credentials.
Technical Analysis
CVE-2026-20029 requires local access, meaning attackers must already have a foothold on the target system.
Exploitation requires some privileges, which limits the exposure to scenarios where an attacker has already gained initial access.
CISA has added CVE-2026-20029 to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, confirming active exploitation in the wild. U.S. federal agencies are required to patch this within the mandated timeframe, and all organizations should treat remediation as urgent.
Affected Vendors & Products
Exploit & PoC Resources
Quick Facts
Recommended Actions
- →Apply vendor patches immediately
- →Monitor CVE-2026-20029 in threat intel feeds
- →Review IDS/IPS signatures for exploitation attempts
- !CISA KEV: Federal agencies must patch per BOD 22-01 timeline
- !Active exploitation confirmed — treat as P1