Is CVE-2026-8452 actively exploited?

Yes. Previdian has observed exploitation attempts targeting this CVE. Confidence is confirmed.

What exploitation activity has Previdian observed?

Previdian sensors have observed 31 exploitation attempts, 12 unique attacker IPs, and 10 countries targeting CVE-2026-8452. First observed Aug 17, 2026; last observed Aug 24, 2026.

Which versions are affected?

CVE-2026-8452 affects NetScaler ADC, Gateway. Previdian lists 6 version rows; examples include 14.1 to < 72.61, 13.1 to < 63.18, and 14.1 FIPS to < 72.61.

How should organizations remediate it?

Prioritize immediate patching and validate internet-facing exposure. Monitor for matching exploitation attempts in your environment.

No. CVE-2026-8452 is not currently listed in CISA KEV.

Vulnerability report

Active exploitation observed Confirmed confidence Not in CISA KEV

CVE-2026-8452

Q: How should organizations remediate it?

Prioritize immediate patching and validate internet-facing exposure. Monitor for matching exploitation attempts in your environment.

Q: Is it in CISA KEV?

No. CVE-2026-8452 is not currently listed in CISA KEV.

ADC Denial of Service

NetScaler / ADC · affected before 72.61

View live feed Monitor via API Watch CVE

Severity: CVSS 8.8 · High
Confidence: Confirmed
Exploit status: Observed in sensors
EPSS: 1.0%
First observed: 17 Aug 2026
Last observed: 24 Aug 2026

Decision summary

What security teams need to know first

Direct answers before the deeper technical record.

What it is

CVE-2026-8452 is an unauthenticated vulnerability affecting NetScaler ADC, Gateway. Memory overflow vulnerability NetScaler ADC and NetScaler Gateway leading to unpredictable or erroneous behavior and Denial of...

Is it exploited?

Yes. Previdian sensors observed exploitation attempts with confirmed confidence.

Who is affected?

NetScaler / ADC affected before 72.61.

What should we do?

Patch immediately, validate internet-facing exposure, and monitor for matching requests.

Overview

ADC Denial of Service

Memory overflow vulnerability NetScaler ADC and NetScaler Gateway leading to unpredictable or erroneous behavior and Denial of Service if the appliance is configured as a Gateway (SSL VPN, ICA Proxy, CVPN, RDP Proxy) or AAA virtual server

Vendor Product Affected Status

NetScaler ADC Before 72.61 Affected

NetScaler ADC Before 63.18 Affected

NetScaler ADC Before 72.61 Affected

NetScaler ADC Before 37.272 Affected

NetScaler Gateway Before 72.61 Affected

NetScaler Gateway Before 63.18 Affected

Published: 30 Jun 2026
Exploited Since: 17 Aug 2026
Attack vector: Remote
Complexity: Low
Privileges: None
User interaction: None

CVE References

CVE Record CVE.org · CVE Record https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-8452
support.citrix.com/support-home/kbsearch/article support.citrix.com · CVE Record https://support.citrix.com/support-home/kbsearch/article?articleNumbe...

Exploitation evidence

Why Previdian marks this CVE as exploited

Third-party attestation and first-party sensor observation are shown separately so teams can judge the evidence chain.

Exploited in the wild

Previdian

Recorded 17 Aug 2026

Independent exploitation attestation added to the Previdian record.

Active exploitation observed

Previdian sensor

First observed 17 Aug 2026

First-party sensor telemetry confirms matching exploitation attempts.

Proof of concept available

Recorded 14 Aug 2026

Public scanner or PoC coverage increases practical exploitability.

Known exploited vulnerability sources

Per-source evidence links for KEV attestations are available through the Previdian Pro API.

Learn about Pro API access

Source	Added
Previdian First	2026-08-17 08:04 UTC

Operational indicators for this CVE are listed under Detection.

Sensor telemetry

First-party evidence of exploitation activity

Aggregate observations show the scale, recency, and distribution of activity without overstating sparse data.

Attempts observed

Unique attacker IPs

Attacker countries

CH · DE · HK · JP · NL · RU · SG · TR · US · VN

Sensors observed

Exploitation attempts over the last 10 days

Daily events observed by Previdian sensors

Updated 25 Aug 2026

16 Aug 18 Aug 20 Aug 22 Aug 25 Aug

First observed 17 Aug 2026 · Last observed 24 Aug 2026

Pro adds sensor region and window summaries. Enterprise adds raw IPs, paths, User-Agents, and payloads.

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Detection

Operational artifacts and observed signals

Make the evidence actionable in scanner, SOC, and edge-control workflows.

Observed signals

Request targets: 15
User-Agents: 25

Raw values available in Pro and Enterprise.

Scanner coverage

No scanner integrations recorded yet.

Virtual patch status

No Previdian virtual patch is currently available. Future rules ship for ModSecurity, Cloudflare, and AWS WAF.

Learn about virtual patches →

Attacker IP Indicators

Attacker IP indicators observed · available in Pro and Enterprise.

Sensor-derived attacker IP indicators are available to Pro and Enterprise accounts under Detection and through the Pro API.

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Risk and context

Severity, weaknesses, and research context

CVSS v4.0

8.8 High

CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:L/VA:H/SC:L/SI:L/SA:L

EPSS

1.0%

Weaknesses

Improper Restriction of Operations within the Bounds of a Memory Buffer CWE-119

Recent mention · watchTowr

You’re Back In The Room (Citrix NetScaler Pre-Auth RCE CVE-2026-8452(?))

Suddenly, you’re in a room. You look around - oh, you’re surrounded by other new starters at your new job. Yes, it’s Monday, and you’re being onboarded.You know the drill - it’s the typical enterprise “please don’t be

Read full advisory

All CVSS Scores

CVSS v4.0 8.8 High

CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:L/VA:H/SC:L/SI:L/SA:L

CVSS v3.1 9.8 Critical

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Potential Proof of Concepts

These PoCs are unverified and could contain malware. Use at your own risk.

watchTowr-vs-Citrix-Netscaler-PreAuth-RCE

public · Created 2026-08-14 19:42:00 UTC

Timeline

From disclosure to observed exploitation

17 Aug 2026
Observed by Previdian sensors

Evidence-backed exploitation signal
17 Aug 2026
Indicators of compromise added (12)

Indicators of compromise recorded
14 Aug 2026
Public PoC available

Public proof-of-concept code published
30 Jun 2026
CVE published

Vulnerability disclosed publicly
13 May 2026
CVE ID reserved

Identifier reserved by the CNA

Pro API

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Confidence, exploit status, sensor telemetry, PoCs, scanner integrations, mentions, and tags are available programmatically for VM, SOC, and CTI workflows.

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Evidence confidence and provenance
First-party sensor telemetry
PoC and scanner references
Affected versions and enrichment
Automation-ready JSON delivery

GET /api/v2/pro/kevs/CVE-2026-8452

Free JSON includes basic KEV fields

{
  "cve_id": "CVE-2026-8452",
  "confidence": "Confirmed",
  "cvss_score": 8.8,
  "cvss_estimated": false,
  "epss_score": 0.01041,
  "exploit_status": {
    "exploited_in_the_wild": true,
    "active_exploitation_observed": true
  },
  "sensor_telemetry": { "attempts": 31, "sensors": 1 }
}

Early warning alerts

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CVE-2026-8452

ADC Denial of Service

CVE References

Exploited in the wild

Active exploitation observed

Proof of concept available

Known exploited vulnerability sources

Observed signals

Scanner coverage

Virtual patch status

Attacker IP Indicators

Weaknesses

You’re Back In The Room (Citrix NetScaler Pre-Auth RCE CVE-2026-8452(?))

All CVSS Scores

Potential Proof of Concepts

Observed by Previdian sensors

Indicators of compromise added (12)

Public PoC available

CVE published

CVE ID reserved

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