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Vulnerabilities

Vulnerability · CVE-2018-0171

Cisco IOS and IOS XE Software Smart Install Remote Code Execution Vulnerability

Published Mar 28, 2018 · catalog updated Jun 16, 2026 · Cisco IOS and IOS XE

Patch now

CVE-2018-0171 is in the CISA known-exploited catalog, due May 3, 2022. Confirm Cisco IOS and IOS XE against the vendor advisory and apply that fix. The CVSS score does not change the priority.

Severity
Critical9.8
Known exploitation
CISA KEV and VulnCheck KEV
EPSS
99.48%
Remediation
Remediation guidance
Affected products
cpe cisco/ios · vendor Cisco IOS and IOS XE

A vulnerability in the Smart Install feature of Cisco IOS Software and Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to trigger a reload of an affected device, resulting in a denial of service (DoS) condition, or to execute arbitrary code on an affected device. The vulnerability is due to improper validation of packet data. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a crafted Smart Install message to an affected device on TCP port 4786. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to cause a buffer overflow on the affected device, which could have the following impacts: Triggering a reload of the device, Allowing the attacker to execute arbitrary code on the device, Causing an indefinite loop on the affected device that triggers a watchdog crash. Cisco Bug IDs: CSCvg76186.

Are you affected?

Enter the version you run. The result uses only the ranges stored on this record.

The check returns affected, not affected, or incomplete. It does not guess a version that is missing from the record.

  • cpe cisco/ios15.2\(5\)e
  • vendor Cisco IOS and IOS XEversion unspecified

How to fix CVE-2018-0171

What to do

Three questions, each answered from this record only. Confirm the vendor advisory before you patch.

Should you patch?

CVE-2018-0171 is in the CISA known-exploited catalog, due May 3, 2022. Confirm Cisco IOS and IOS XE against the vendor advisory and apply that fix. The CVSS score does not change the priority.

Which versions are affected?

Compare what you have installed with 15.2\(5\)e. Apply updates per vendor instructions.

What should an analyst verify?

CWE-20: Improper Input Validation; CWE-787: Out-of-bounds Write. EPSS 99.48%. The CISA KEV listing is the exploitation evidence. A public exploit reference is linked in Sources. That is not the same as confirmed exploitation. Use the source links for the original advisory.

Technology hubs

Cisco security

Code

The project this record applies to. Exploit listings stay in References.

No public source repository is identified for this product.

Timeline

Detection, updates, and resolution for this record.

  1. Mar 28, 2018 · Catalog

    Detected

    A vulnerability in the Smart Install feature of Cisco IOS Software and Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to trigger a reload of an affected device, resulting in a denial of service (DoS) condition, or to execute arbitrary code on an affected device. The vulnerability is due to improper validation of packet data. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by se

  2. Nov 3, 2021 · CISA KEV

    Known exploited

    Apply updates per vendor instructions.

  3. May 3, 2022 · CISA KEV

    Remediation due

    Apply updates per vendor instructions.

  4. Jun 16, 2026 · Catalog

    Updated

    A vulnerability in the Smart Install feature of Cisco IOS Software and Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to trigger a reload of an affected device, resulting in a denial of service (DoS) condition, or to execute arbitrary code on an affected device. The vulnerability is due to improper validation of packet data. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by se

Sources

  • CISA KEVConfirmed exploitationCVE-2018-0171

    Cisco IOS and IOS XE Software improperly validates packet data, allowing an unauthenticated, remote attacker to trigger a reload of an affected device, cause a denial-of-service (DoS) condition, or perform code execution on the affected device.

    cisa.gov
  • CVE.orgVulnerability recordCVE-2018-0171

    Official CVE identifier

    cve.org
  • FIRST EPSSExploitation probabilityCVE-2018-0171

    30-day exploitation probability 99.5%

    first.org
  • Exploit DatabasePublic exploit reference44451

    Public archive entry. The exploit body is not stored here.

    exploit-db.com
  • NIST NVDVulnerability recordCVE-2018-0171

    A vulnerability in the Smart Install feature of Cisco IOS Software and Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to trigger a reload of an affected device, resulting in a denial of service (DoS) condition, or to execute arbitrary code on an affected de

    nvd.nist.gov
  • VulnCheck KEVConfirmed exploitationCVE-2018-0171

    Cisco IOS and IOS XE Software improperly validates packet data, allowing an unauthenticated, remote attacker to trigger a reload of an affected device, cause a denial-of-service (DoS) condition, or perform code execution on the affected device.

    vulncheck.com

References

Freshness

Last verified in this catalog Oct 17, 2026. Significant claims (KEV, EPSS, CVSS, affected ranges) come from the source rows above — open the original publisher for the authoritative advisory.