CVE-2026-76460
CVE-2026-76460 — Cisco Identity Services Engine Authentication Bypass Vulnerability
A vulnerability in an API of Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to bypass authentication. This vulnerability is due to insufficient authentication control on an API endpoint. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a crafted request to an affected API endpoint. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to gain unauthorized access to the affected device by bypassing the web-based management interface.
Published Updated Sources: NVD, Cisco (CNA), CISA, GitHub, GitHub Security Advisory, SOCRadar CTI
Triage
Is it exploited, how likely is exploitation, what does it touch, and how severe do the scoring sources call it.
Exploitation
Confirmed
CISA KEV, listed Sep 16, 2026
EPSS
0%
ahead of 0% of scored CVEs
CVSS base
10
critical
CISA SSVC assessment
Three decision points CISA publishes for the CVEs it assesses · SSVC 2.0.3. A stakeholder decision, not a severity score.
Exploitation
Active
none · proof-of-concept · active
Automatable
Yes
can an attacker script all four kill-chain steps
Technical impact
Total
partial · total control of the vulnerable component
Remediation
The vendor's own words where we have them.
Upgrade Cisco Identity Services Engine Software to a fixed release. Apply vendor patches per advisory and restrict external exposure of the affected component until patched.
CISA required action
Apply mitigations in accordance with vendor instructions, ensuring compliance with CISA’s BOD 26-04 Prioritizing Security Updates Based on Risk (see URL in Notes) guidance and CISA’s “Forensics Triage Requirements” (see URL in Notes). Follow applicable BOD 26-04 guidance for cloud services or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable. Stakeholders are responsible for evaluating each asset's internet exposure and ensuring adherence to BOD 26-04 patching guidelines.
Federal deadline Sep 19, 2026 — in 2 days
First 24 hours
Ordered from the record's own fields — exposure first, because you cannot patch what you have not found.
- Identify exposed assets running affected vendor/product/version combinations.
- Treat as emergency remediation because CISA KEV status is present.
- Search available logs for exploit probes, errors, authentication anomalies, or suspicious child processes matching the vulnerability class.
Affected scope
Vendor, product and version as the advisories word them.
| Vendor | Product | Versions | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cisco | Cisco Identity Services Engine Software | 3.1.0 p8 | Vulnerable |
| Cisco | Cisco Identity Services Engine Software | 3.1.0 p9 | Vulnerable |
| Cisco | Cisco Identity Services Engine Software | 3.3 Patch 2 | Vulnerable |
| Cisco | Cisco Identity Services Engine Software | 3.3 Patch 1 | Vulnerable |
| Cisco | Cisco Identity Services Engine Software | 3.3 Patch 3 | Vulnerable |
| Cisco | Cisco Identity Services Engine Software | 3.4.0 | Vulnerable |
| Cisco | Cisco Identity Services Engine Software | 3.2.0 p7 | Vulnerable |
| Cisco | Cisco Identity Services Engine Software | 3.3 Patch 4 | Vulnerable |
| Cisco | Cisco Identity Services Engine Software | 3.4 Patch 1 | Vulnerable |
| Cisco | Cisco Identity Services Engine Software | 3.1.0 p10 | Vulnerable |
| Cisco | Cisco Identity Services Engine Software | 3.3 Patch 5 | Vulnerable |
| Cisco | Cisco Identity Services Engine Software | 3.3 Patch 6 | Vulnerable |
Attack characteristics
The CVSS vector, decoded. It describes the attack, not your exposure to it.
Availability
High
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Scope
Changed
Attack Complexity
Low
Attack Vector
Network
Privileges Req
None
User Interaction
None
Every base score collected
Sources score independently and disagree; each row says who scored it and under which version.
| Score | Version | Severity | Expl. | Impact | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | CVSS 3.1 | critical | 3.9 | 6 | NVD, Cisco (CNA), GHSA |
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H
What this weakness leads to
MITRE's own consequences and mitigations for the weakness class — the authority's wording, not guidance derived from the CVSS vector.
CWE-648 · Incorrect Use of Privileged APIs
- Gain Privileges or Assume Identity
- Read Application Data
- Execute Unauthorized Code or Commands
Mitigation: Before calling privileged APIs, always ensure that the assumptions made by the privileged code hold true prior to making the call.
Weakness & attack patterns
- CWE-648
Attack patterns reported against this CVE. The ATT&CK techniques below are inferred from its weakness class.
CISA KEV details
CISA lists a CVE here once it has evidence of exploitation against real targets.
Listed
Sep 16, 2026
Federal deadline
Sep 19, 2026
in 2 days
Ransomware use
Unknown
CISA records ransomware use only for campaigns it has confirmed, so “Unknown” means unrecorded, not ruled out. The deadline binds US federal agencies; for everyone else it is a date to argue against.
Public exploit
Capability, not use: code existing is a different claim from anyone running it.
Repositories
3
1 of the 3 sampled are weaponized
Detection
Read off the CVSS vector and the weakness class. Starting points, not rules we have tested.
- Prioritize edge telemetry for network-reachable Cisco Identity Services Engine Software, Cisco ISE Passive Identity Connector.
- Monitor for scanner or exploit-pattern traffic after 3 public PoC repositories were reported.
Timeline
What happened to this CVE, newest first — with the readings a source repeats on a schedule counted underneath rather than listed.
- 2026
Added to CISA KEV catalog
Sep 16, 2026 · CISA
Added · CVSS 3.1 10.0 (AV:N)
Sep 16, 2026 · NVD
Initial · CVE published
Sep 16, 2026 · NVD
Added · GHSA-25wc-3w28-q6vw published (critical)
Sep 16, 2026 · GitHub Security Advisory
CVE published by MITRE.
Sep 16, 2026 · SOCRadar CTI
References
6 on the record
- sec.cloudapps.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-ISE-ABP-VNSW7Tn5
Vendor Advisory, Mitre
- www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2026-76460
US Government Resource
- nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-76460
NVD, Vendor Advisory
- github.com/advisories/GHSA-25wc-3w28-q6vw
Exploit, Third Party Advisory
- www.cisa.gov/news-events/directives/bod-26-04-prioritizing-security-updates-based-risk
US Government Resource
- www.cisa.gov/news-events/directives/bod-26-04-implementation-guidance-prioritizing-security-updates-based-risk
US Government Resource
Elsewhere on this site
- Ciscoevery CVE for this vendor
- September 2026what else CISA listed
- Auth Bypasssame class
- CWE-648other pages naming this weakness
Not in any source we poll
Listed rather than left blank: an empty field and an unmeasured one look identical on screen, and only one is a reason to look elsewhere.
- No confirmed IOCs, IP addresses, domains, file hashes, or malware artifacts supplied.
- No organization-specific asset inventory, compensating-control status, or patch deployment evidence supplied.
- No exploit packet captures, log samples, or incident case IDs supplied.
Answered from this record1
What should defenders know first?
CVE-2026-76460 is Cisco Identity Services Engine Authentication Bypass Vulnerability, a critical vulnerability affecting Cisco Identity Services Engine Software, Cisco ISE Passive Identity Connector from Cisco. The current evidence lists it in CISA KEV, and the exploit status is: Yes: CISA KEV signal present. Public exploit evidence is: 3 public PoC repositories reported; 1 marked weaponized in current dataset. The affected-version evidence is listed in the key facts and affected products tables. Defenders should first verify whether exposed or business-critical assets run those versions, then apply vendor patches or mitigations, restrict reachable attack surface, and preserve logs for detection review. CVSS 10 describes technical severity, while EPSS 0% helps estimate near-term exploit likelihood; neither replaces asset context. Unknown fields should remain explicit in tickets, and threat actor, IOC, victimology, or payload claims should not be added unless a cited source supports them. Monitor CISA KEV, vendor advisories, NVD changes, public PoC repositories, and internal telemetry for update triggers.