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Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center Software Authentication Bypass Vulnerability

criticalCVE-2026-20079
A vulnerability in the web interface of Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center (FMC) Software could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to bypass authentication and execute script files on an affected device to obtain root access to the underlying operating system. This vulnerability is due to an improper system process that is created at boot time. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending crafted HTTP requests to an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to execute a variety of scripts and commands that allow root access to the device. Note: If the FMC management interface does not have public internet access, the attack surface that is associated with this vulnerability is reduced. Cisco has released software updates that address this vulnerability. There are no workarounds that address this vulnerability. This advisory is available at the following link: https://sec.cloudapps.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-onprem-fmc-authbypass-5JPp45V2 This advisory is part of the March 2026 release of the Cisco Secure Firewall ASA, Secure FMC, and Secure FTD Software Security Advisory Bundled Publication. For a complete list of the advisories and links to them, see Cisco Event Response: March 2026 Semiannual Cisco Secure Firewall ASA, Secure FMC, and Secure FTD Software Security Advisory Bundled Publication . Security Impact Rating: Critical CVE: CVE-2026-20079

CSIRTS triage

What
A vulnerability allows an unauthenticated remote attacker to bypass authentication and gain root access.
Who is affected
Deployments of Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center Software.
Urgency
Remediation is critical due to the potential for full system compromise.
Action
Apply the released software updates to mitigate this vulnerability.

AI-assisted analysis generated from the source advisory — verify against the original.

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Details

Source
Cisco Security Advisories (INTL · vendor-psirt · site)
Severity
critical
Published
2026-07-31
Exploitation
Not in CISA KEV at last sync

Original advisory: https://sec.cloudapps.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-onprem-fmc-authbypass-5JPp45V2?vs_f=Cisco%20Security%20Advisory%26vs_cat=Security%20Intelligence%26vs_type=RSS%26vs_p=Cisco%20Secure%20Firewall%20Management%20Center%20Software%20Authentication%20Bypass%20Vulnerability%26vs_k=1

Exploitation outlook

EPSS (FIRST.org) estimates each CVE’s probability of exploitation in the next 30 days — here is the CSIRTS.com read on those numbers.

Referenced CVEs

CVECSIRTS overviewExternal
CVE-2026-20079coverage & exploitation statusNVD · CVE.org

Recent advisories for Cisco Secure Firewall

A cluster of recent advisories against the same product widens the attack surface — attackers routinely chain freshly published CVEs on one product, so review these together.

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