CVE-2025-20340
Cisco IOS XR Address Resolution Protocol Broadcast Storm Vulnerability
A vulnerability in the Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) implementation of Cisco IOS XR Software could allow an unauthenticated, adjacent attacker to trigger a broadcast storm, leading to a denial of service (DoS) condition on an affected device.
This vulnerability is due to how Cisco IOS XR Software processes a high, sustained rate of ARP traffic hitting the management interface. Under certain conditions, an attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending an excessive amount of traffic to the management interface of an affected device, overwhelming its ARP processing capabilities. A successful exploit could result in degraded device performance, loss of management connectivity, and complete unresponsiveness of the system, leading to a DoS condition.
Attack profile
How easy it is to exploit
- Attack vector
- Adjacent network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges needed
- None
- User interaction
- None
What an attacker can affect
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- High
Exploit likelihood
What each source reports
CVE List Score used
Cisco IOS XR Address Resolution Protocol Broadcast Storm Vulnerability
A vulnerability in the Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) implementation of Cisco IOS XR Software could allow an unauthenticated, adjacent attacker to trigger a broadcast storm, leading to a denial of service (DoS) condition on an affected device.
This vulnerability is due to how Cisco IOS XR Software processes a high, sustained rate of ARP traffic hitting the management interface. Under certain conditions, an attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending an excessive amount of traffic to the management interface of an affected device, overwhelming its ARP processing capabilities. A successful exploit could result in degraded device performance, loss of management connectivity, and complete unresponsiveness of the system, leading to a DoS condition.
- Record
CVE-2025-20340- CVSS 3.1
- 7.4 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H - Weakness
- CWE-400
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
EUVDEUVD-2025-27573
A vulnerability in the Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) implementation of Cisco IOS XR Software could allow an unauthenticated, adjacent attacker to trigger a broadcast storm, leading to a denial of service (DoS) condition on an affected device.
This vulnerability is due to how Cisco IOS XR Software processes a high, sustained rate of ARP traffic hitting the management interface. Under certain conditions, an attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending an excessive amount of traffic to the management interface of an affected device, overwhelming its ARP processing capabilities. A successful exploit could result in degraded device performance, loss of management connectivity, and complete unresponsiveness of the system, leading to a DoS condition.
- Record
EUVD-2025-27573- CVSS 3.1
- 7.4 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H - Updated
- 2026-11-02
GitHub AdvisoriesGHSA-7xc2-hq29-896q
A vulnerability in the Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) implementation of Cisco IOS XR Software...
A vulnerability in the Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) implementation of Cisco IOS XR Software could allow an unauthenticated, adjacent attacker to trigger a broadcast storm, leading to a denial of service (DoS) condition on an affected device.
This vulnerability is due to how Cisco IOS XR Software processes a high, sustained rate of ARP traffic hitting the management interface. Under certain conditions, an attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending an excessive amount of traffic to the management interface of an affected device, overwhelming its ARP processing capabilities. A successful exploit could result in degraded device performance, loss of management connectivity, and complete unresponsiveness of the system, leading to a DoS condition.
- Record
GHSA-7xc2-hq29-896q- CVSS 3.1
- 7.4 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H - Weakness
- CWE-400
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
NVD
A vulnerability in the Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) implementation of Cisco IOS XR Software could allow an unauthenticated, adjacent attacker to trigger a broadcast storm, leading to a denial of service (DoS) condition on an affected device.
This vulnerability is due to how Cisco IOS XR Software processes a high, sustained rate of ARP traffic hitting the management interface. Under certain conditions, an attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending an excessive amount of traffic to the management interface of an affected device, overwhelming its ARP processing capabilities. A successful exploit could result in degraded device performance, loss of management connectivity, and complete unresponsiveness of the system, leading to a DoS condition.
- Record
CVE-2025-20340- CVSS 3.1
- 7.4 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H - Weakness
- CWE-400
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
Affected products
History
| Recorded | Changed | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| first indexed | CVE List, EUVD, GitHub Advisories, NVD |
Dates are when Every CVE recorded each change. Upstream dates may differ.
In short
CVE-2025-20340 is a high vulnerability (CVSS 7.4) in Cisco Ios Xr Software, published September 10, 2025. No source lists public exploit code. EPSS puts the chance of exploitation in the next 30 days at 0.64%, the 51st percentile. No source names a fixed version.