Security

Federal Agencies Mandated to Upgrade Outdated Edge Devices by CISA

Published

2 days ago

February 9, 2026

CISA Issues Directive to Address Vulnerabilities in Federal Network Edge Devices

Recently, the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) announced a new binding operational directive aimed at enhancing the security posture of federal agencies. This directive mandates the identification and removal of network edge devices that no longer receive security updates from manufacturers.

The directive underscores the importance of addressing end-of-life edge devices, including routers, firewalls, and network switches, which pose significant risks to federal systems. CISA has highlighted the imminent threat posed by exploitation of these devices by advanced threat actors.

The vulnerabilities associated with end-of-support (EOS) hardware and software on federal networks have prompted the issuance of Binding Operational Directive 26-02 (BOD 26-02). This directive requires immediate action to decommission unsupported devices and implement inventory management practices.

Under BOD 26-02, federal agencies must replace end-of-support devices with vendor-supported equipment receiving current security updates within 18 months. Additionally, continuous discovery processes must be established to identify and manage devices approaching end-of-support status.

While the directive specifically targets U.S. Federal Civilian Executive Branch (FCEB) agencies, CISA encourages all network defenders to adhere to the guidelines outlined in the fact sheet. This proactive approach aims to safeguard systems, data, and operations against threats targeting network edge devices.

Notably, CISA had previously issued Binding Operational Directive 23-02, focusing on securing misconfigured or Internet-exposed management interfaces within federal civilian agencies. The agency has also introduced the Ransomware Vulnerability Warning Pilot (RVWP) program to alert critical infrastructure organizations about vulnerable network devices.

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