---
title: "CVE-2026-20128: Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Manager Storing Passwords in a Recoverable Format Vulnerability"
url: https://erroneo.us/security/cve/CVE-2026-20128/
description: "CVE-2026-20128 (Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Manager): Exploited in the wild (CISA KEV). A vulnerability in the Data Collection Agent (DCA) feature of Cisco…"
type: vulnerability-record
section: "Security Digest"
date_published: 2026-02-25
date_modified: 2026-04-21
publisher: erroneo.us
author: erroneo.us Security Desk
cve: "CVE-2026-20128"
kev: true
cvss: 7.5
epss: 0.07217
license: All rights reserved. Quote with attribution and a link.
---

# CVE-2026-20128: Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Manager Storing Passwords in a Recoverable Format Vulnerability

**Signal:** Exploited: patch now if you run it. CISA has confirmed exploitation in the wild. (Computed from CISA KEV, EPSS and CVSS; not an editorial verdict.)

## Should you act?

- Yes, if you run Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Manager. CISA added this CVE to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 2026-04-20, which means there is reliable evidence of exploitation in the wild. US federal agencies must remediate by 2026-04-23 ; treat that as the outer limit, not the target.
- EPSS 7.2% , percentile 94: FIRST’s model estimates a 7.2% chance of exploitation activity in the next 30 days, higher than 94% of all scored CVEs (elevated). EPSS is a probability, not a verdict.
- Needs local access needed. Lower urgency for most teams unless an attacker could already run code on the machine.

## What it is

A vulnerability in the Data Collection Agent (DCA) feature of Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Manager could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to gain DCA user privileges on an affected system. This vulnerability is due to the presence of a credential file for the DCA user on an affected system. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a crafted HTTP request and reading the file that contains the DCA password from that affected system. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to access another affected system and gain DCA user privileges. Note: Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Manager releases 20.18 and later are not affected by this vulnerability.

## Affected products (CVE record)

- Cisco Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Manager: 20.1.12, 19.2.1, 18.4.4, 18.4.5, 20.1.1.1, 20.1.1, 19.3.0, 19.2.2, 19.2.099, 18.3.6, 18.3.7, 19.2.0

## Severity

- cisco CVSS 3.1: 7.5 `CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H`

## Exploitation

- CISA KEV: added 2026-04-20; federal due date 2026-04-23. Known ransomware use: Unknown.
- CISA required action: Please adhere to CISA’s guidelines to assess exposure and mitigate risks associated with Cisco SD-WAN devices as outlines in CISA’s Emergency Directive 26-03 (URL listed below in Notes) and CISA’s “Hunt & Hardening Guidance for Cisco SD-WAN Devices (URL listed below in Notes). Adhere to the applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are not available.
- CISA SSVC assessment: exploitation active , automatable no , technical impact total .
- FIRST EPSS (model of 2026-10-21): 7.22% probability of exploitation activity in the next 30 days; percentile 94.

## Sources

- [Listed in CISA KEV notes (sec.cloudapps.cisco.com)](https://sec.cloudapps.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-sdwan-authbp-qwCX8D4v)
- [CVE.org record CVE-2026-20128](https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-20128)
- [NVD entry CVE-2026-20128](https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-20128)
- [CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog entry](https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2026-20128)
- [Listed in CISA KEV notes (cisa.gov)](https://www.cisa.gov/news-events/directives/ed-26-03-mitigate-vulnerabilities-cisco-sd-wan-systems)
- [Listed in CISA KEV notes (cisa.gov)](https://www.cisa.gov/news-events/directives/supplemental-direction-ed-26-03-hunt-and-hardening-guidance-cisco-sd-wan-systems)

---
Source page: https://erroneo.us/security/cve/CVE-2026-20128/ · Security Digest: https://erroneo.us/security/ · More: https://erroneo.us/llms.txt