By Carly Page
Publication Date: 2026-09-15 16:01:00
security
Attackers already exploiting the critical flaw, and Cisco warns they may be able to cover their tracks once they’re in
Criminals are exploiting a critical Cisco Secure Email Gateway flaw that can turn a malicious email into root access.
The vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2026-76461, carries a 9.8 CVSS score and affects physical and virtual Secure Email Gateway appliances regardless of their configuration. Cisco says there are no workarounds, so patching is the only fix.
The bug lies in how Cisco’s AsyncOS software handles incoming email. An attacker doesn’t need to log in: they can send a booby-trapped message through a vulnerable gateway and, if the exploit works, run commands as root.
Which is not exactly what you want from the box tasked with keeping nasty emails out.
Cisco’s Product Security Incident Response Team said it became aware of active exploitation…
