On 2026-01-21, CISA added CVE-2026-20045 (Cisco Unified Communications Manager) to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) Catalog [2]. The vulnerability is listed in the catalog as "Cisco Unified Communications Products Code Injection Vulnerability" [2]. CISA requires remediation in accordance with vendor mitigation instructions; see the original text in the body for specific requirements [2].
Backfill: this event became public on Jan 21, 2026 and we added it on Nov 10, 2026. It is not a new event.
CISA Adds Cisco Unified Communications Manager Vulnerability CVE-2026-20045 to Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog
1 min read
- Disclosed
- Jan 21, 2026
- Published
- Nov 10, 2026
- Last updated
- Nov 8, 2026
- CVSS basis
- Our assessment
- 4.5%, higher than 92% of CVEs
- Exploitation and patch status
- ExploitedKEV
- Attack vector
- Vulnerability status
- Actor type
- Motivation
On this page
30-second summary
What happened
Who is affected
Industries mainly affected: Government, Cross-industry
What to do nowOur advice
CISA requires remediation in accordance with vendor mitigation instructions; see the original text in the body for specific requirements [2]
Timeline
Technical details
CISA KEV Listing Record
On 2026-01-21, CISA added CVE-2026-20045 to the catalog for Cisco Unified Communications Manager [2].
Original Technical Description
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 contain a code injection vulnerability that could allow the attacker to obtain user-level access to the underlying operating system and then elevate privileges to root. [2]
Official Requirements
Apply mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable. [2]
Individual Vulnerability Record
The U.S. National Vulnerability Database (NVD) provides an independent vulnerability record and description for CVE-2026-20045. [1]
References
Official / primary3
- [1]
“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 Inst”
- [2]
This site aggregates public information and is not security consulting advice. Test remediation steps before applying.