CVE-2026-20173

5.8 MEDIUM 0.4% exploit odds No fix listed Denial of service Network gear

What it is

A vulnerability in Cisco NX-OS Software could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to exhaust system resources, causing a denial of service (DoS) condition. This vulnerability exists because rate limiting was improperly applied to some protocols. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a high rate of UDP or TCP connections to a data plane interface on an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to cause instability to various routing and control plane protocols through some packet loss and temporary disruptions, causing a DoS condition. This DoS condition will clear without manual intervention soon after the high rate of traffic is stopped.

At a glance

Exploitability: Can be exploited over the network without logging in. Limited direct impact.
Exploit odds: 0.4% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days (EPSS).
Fix: No patch or advisory is linked yet. Look at mitigations or restrict exposure.