CVE Catalog

CVE-2024-20260

HighCVSS 8.6
Published: Updated: Translated: NVD NIST

Exploitation Probability (EPSS)

Low risk
0.62%

48th percentile - higher than 48% of all known CVEs

Summary

A vulnerability in the VPN and management web servers of the Cisco Secure Firewall ASA Software and Cisco Secure FTD Software platforms could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to cause an affected device to run out of system memory or buffer blocks, which in turn could cause SSL VPN connection processing to slow down and eventually cease altogether. This vulnerability is due to a lack of proper memory management for new incoming SSL/TLS connections. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a large number of new incoming SSL/TLS connections to the targeted device, resulting in a denial of service (DoS) condition.

Risk Assessment

An attacker can cause a denial of service (DoS) on Cisco Secure Firewall devices, disrupting VPN access and management. This may lead to business interruptions and loss of service availability.

Recommendation

Apply the Cisco Secure Firewall ASA and FTD software updates that fix this vulnerability. Until patches are deployed, monitor SSL/TLS traffic and limit the number of new connections from untrusted sources.

Other vulnerabilities in Cisco Secure Firewall ASA and FTD Software

Original NVD description (English source)

Update for September 16, 2026: The original 1.0 version of this advisory was specific to the Cisco Adaptive Security Virtual Appliance (ASAv) and Cisco Secure Firewall Threat Defense Virtual (FTDv) models. However, it was later found that this vulnerability affects all Cisco Secure Firewall Adaptive Security Appliance (ASA) Software and Cisco Secure Firewall Threat Defense (FTD) Software platforms. A vulnerability in the VPN and management web servers of the Cisco Secure Firewall ASA Software and Cisco Secure FTD Software platforms could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to cause an affected device to run out of system memory or buffer blocks, which in turn could cause SSL VPN connection processing to slow down and eventually cease altogether. This vulnerability is due to a lack of proper memory management for new incoming SSL/TLS connections. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a large number of new incoming SSL/TLS connections to the targeted device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to deplete system memory or buffers, resulting in a denial of service (DoS) condition. The memory or buffers could be reclaimed slowly if the attack traffic is stopped, but a manual reload may be required to restore operations quickly.

Vulnerability data from NVD (NIST) · CISA KEV · EPSS