Hazard

Is CVE-2025-20333 being exploited?

Confirmed exploited in the wild

CISA has evidence of active exploitation. This is not theoretical risk — someone has already used it against someone.

Cisco Secure Firewall Adaptive Security Appliance (ASA) and Secure Firewall Threat Defense (FTD) Buffer Overflow Vulnerability

Cisco · Secure Firewall Adaptive Security Appliance and Secure Firewall Threat Defense

CVSS 9.9 EPSS 40% no public exploit indexed Fix deadline passed 26 September 2025

What it is

Cisco Secure Firewall Adaptive Security (ASA) Appliance and Secure Firewall Threat Defense (FTD) Software VPN Web Server contain a buffer overflow vulnerability that allows for remote code execution. This vulnerability could be chained with CVE-2025-20362.

Why we say that

  • CISA's federal remediation deadline (2025-09-26) has passed
  • CVSS 9.9 critical
  • Listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalogue

Every line above comes from a named public source. Where the evidence is thin, we say so rather than inventing confidence — see methodology.

What to do

The KEV due date refers to the deadline by which FCEB agencies are expected to review and begin implementing the guidance outlined in Emergency Directive (ED) 25-03 (URL listed below in Notes). Agencies must follow the mitigation steps provided by CISA (URL listed below in Notes) and vendor’s instructions (URL listed below in Notes). Adhere to the applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are not available.

What it costs when this goes wrong

This is where UK enforcement meets the vulnerability record. Where an unfixed vulnerability leads to a breach, the ICO treats it as a security failure under UK GDPR. Recent cases:

All UK cases caused by unpatched software →