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Big Ip Local Traffic ManagerApplication · F5

CVE-2016-9250

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v3.0 Published 2017-05-10
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
84/100
Remediation priority · High
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
In F5 BIG-IP 11.2.1, 11.4.0 through 11.6.1, and 12.0.0 through 12.1.2, an unauthenticated user with access to the control plane may be able to delete arbitrary files through an undisclosed mechanism.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · moderate confidence

F5 BIG-IP versions 11.2.1, 11.4.0-11.6.1, and 12.0.0-12.1.2 contain an unauthenticated file deletion vulnerability in the control plane. An attacker with network access to the control plane (without valid credentials) can delete arbitrary files on the filesystem through an undisclosed mechanism.

MitigationUpgrade F5 BIG-IP to a version beyond 12.1.2 or apply the appropriate hotfix per F5 advisory. Restrict network access to the management interface and control plane to trusted networks only.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
Big Ip Local Traffic ManagerApplication
Affected:= 11.2.1= 11.4.0= 11.4.1= 11.5.0= 11.5.1= 11.5.2= 11.5.3= 11.5.4= 11.6.0= 11.6.1= 12.0.0= 12.1.0
Big Ip Application Acceleration ManagerApplication
Affected:= 11.4.0= 11.4.1= 11.5.0= 11.5.1= 11.5.2= 11.5.3= 11.5.4= 11.6.0= 11.6.1= 12.0.0= 12.1.0= 12.1.1
Big Ip Advanced Firewall ManagerApplication
Affected:= 11.2.1= 11.4.0= 11.4.1= 11.5.0= 11.5.1= 11.5.2= 11.5.3= 11.5.4= 11.6.0= 11.6.1= 12.0.0= 12.1.0
Big Ip AnalyticsApplication
Affected:= 11.2.1= 11.4.0= 11.4.1= 11.5.0= 11.5.1= 11.5.2= 11.5.3= 11.5.4= 11.6.0= 11.6.1= 12.0.0= 12.1.0
Big Ip Access Policy ManagerApplication
Affected:= 11.2.1= 11.4.0= 11.4.1= 11.5.0= 11.5.1= 11.5.2= 11.5.3= 11.5.4= 11.6.0= 11.6.1= 12.0.0= 12.1.0
Big Ip Application Security ManagerApplication
Affected:= 11.2.1= 11.4.0= 11.4.1= 11.5.0= 11.5.1= 11.5.2= 11.5.3= 11.5.4= 11.6.0= 11.6.1= 12.0.0= 12.1.0
Big Ip Domain Name SystemApplication
Affected:= 12.0.0= 12.1.0= 12.1.1= 12.1.2
Big Ip Edge GatewayWeb browser
Affected:= 11.2.1

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
High
Availability
None

CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify the installed BIG-IP version
    Run the command 'tmsh show sys version' or check the GUI under Main > Overview > System > Software Management > Images
    Affected if The version matches 11.2.1, 11.4.0-11.6.1, 12.0.0-12.1.0, 12.1.1, or 12.1.2 depending on the module installed
  2. Confirm the BIG-IP module in use
    Run 'tmsh list sys module' or check the licensed modules in the GUI under Main > License
    Affected if One of these modules is licensed and running: LTM, AAM, AFM, Analytics, APM, ASM, DNS, or Edge Gateway on an affected version
  3. Determine if control plane is network accessible
    Check the management interface and self IP exposure by reviewing the BIG-IP network configuration under Network > Self IPs or by testing connectivity to port 443/8443 on the management IP from an untrusted network
    Affected if The control plane (management interface or internal IP reachable via data plane) is reachable from untrusted networks
  4. Verify no authentication is required for the attack vector
    The vulnerability allows unauthenticated file deletion - confirm that no additional authentication layer (such as restricted access lists or SSL certificates) is enforced on the control plane endpoint
    Affected if The control plane accepts unauthenticated requests from the network

You are affected if your BIG-IP version is one of the versions listed and the control plane is accessible from an untrusted network without proper authentication restrictions.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Upgrade F5 BIG-IP to a version beyond 12.1.2 or apply the appropriate hotfix per F5 advisory. Restrict network access to the management interface and control plane to trusted networks only.

Fix this in Big Ip Local Traffic Manager Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,970
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2016-9250 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data