CVE-2024-20446
CVE-2024-20446 is a high-severity vulnerability with a CVSS 3.x base score of 8.6. It is not currently listed as actively exploited by CISA, and its EPSS exploit-prediction score is low. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-476.
Key facts
- Severity: High (CVSS 3.x base score 8.6)
- EPSS exploit prediction: 1% (52nd percentile)
- Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
- EU (EUVD) id: EUVD-2024-18161
- Weakness: CWE-476
- Published:
- Last modified:
Description
A vulnerability in the DHCPv6 relay agent of Cisco NX-OS Software could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to cause a denial of service (DoS) condition on an affected device. This vulnerability is due to improper handling of specific fields in a DHCPv6 RELAY-REPLY message. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a crafted DHCPv6 packet to any IPv6 address that is configured on an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to cause the dhcp_snoop process to crash and restart multiple times, causing the affected device to reload and resulting in a DoS condition.
Frequently asked questions
- What is CVE-2024-20446?
- A vulnerability in the DHCPv6 relay agent of Cisco NX-OS Software could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to cause a denial of service (DoS) condition on an affected device. This vulnerability is due to improper handling of specific fields in a DHCPv6 RELAY-REPLY message. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a crafted DHCPv6 packet to any IPv6 address that is configured on an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to cause the dhcp_snoop process to crash and restart multiple times, causing the affected device to reload and resulting in a DoS condition.
- How severe is CVE-2024-20446?
- CVE-2024-20446 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 8.6, rated high severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity none, and availability high.
- Is CVE-2024-20446 being actively exploited?
- It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 1% (52nd percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
- How do I fix CVE-2024-20446?
- Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its high severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.
- Does CVE-2024-20446 have an EU (EUVD) identifier?
- Yes. CVE-2024-20446 is tracked in the ENISA EU Vulnerability Database (EUVD) as EUVD-2024-18161.
- When was CVE-2024-20446 published?
- CVE-2024-20446 was published on 2024-08-28 and last updated on 2026-06-17.
References
Other CWE-476 (NULL Pointer Dereference) vulnerabilities
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- CVE-2020-14500 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Secomea GateManager all versions prior to 9.2c, An attacker can send a negative value and overwrite arbitrary data.
- CVE-2010-2495 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): The pppol2tp_xmit function in drivers/net/pppol2tp.c in the L2TP implementation in the Linux kernel before 2.6.34 does…
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- CVE-2026-31436 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: dmaengine: idxd: fix possible wrong descriptor…
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