Executive Risk Summary
"A vulnerability in the DHCP snooping feature of Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to cause a denial of service (DoS) condition by forwarding BOOTP packets between VLANs. This vulnerability can be exploited with either unicast or broadcast BOOTP packets, potentially leading to high CPU utilization and making the device unreachable."
Anticipated Attack Path
- 1. An attacker sends BOOTP request packets to an affected Cisco IOS XE device.
- 2. The device improperly handles the BOOTP packets, allowing them to be forwarded between VLANs.
- 3. The attacker exploits this vulnerability to cause a DoS condition, potentially leading to high CPU utilization and device unreachability.
Am I Vulnerable?
- Is your Cisco IOS XE Software version affected by this vulnerability?
- Are your Cisco Catalyst 9000 Series Switches configured to use the DHCP snooping feature?
- Have you implemented workarounds or patches to address this vulnerability?
Operational Audit Arsenal
Target Type Network Device
Target Asset Cisco Catalyst 9000 Series Switches
Standard Path Management Plane / Network Infrastructure
Manual Verification Required
This is a non-Windows asset (Cisco). Use the target asset details and official path provided above to verify your current version against the official vendor advisories listed below.
Patch Impact Forecast
Reboot Required Likely
Potential disruption to network services during patch application
Internal Work Notes
CVE-2026-20084: Potential DoS vulnerability in Cisco IOS XE Software on Cisco Catalyst 9000 Series Switches. Implement workarounds or patches to prevent exploitation.
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Intelligence Sources
Related Cisco Threats
Data compiled from NVD, MSRC, and CISA KEV Catalog. Intelligence synthesized via AI. Scripts provided for diagnostic purposes under MIT License.