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Big Ip Local Traffic ManagerApplication · F5

CVE-2017-6131

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.0 Published 2017-05-23
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
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 some circumstances, an F5 BIG-IP version 12.0.0 to 12.1.2 and 13.0.0 Azure cloud instance may contain a default administrative password which could be used to remotely log into the BIG-IP system. The impacted administrative account is the Azure instance administrative user that was created at deployment. The root and admin accounts are not vulnerable. An attacker may be able to remotely access the BIG-IP host via SSH.

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 · high confidence

F5 BIG-IP versions 12.0.0-12.1.2 and 13.0.0 deployed on Azure contain a default administrative password for the Azure instance user account that is set at deployment time. This password could allow remote SSH access to the BIG-IP host. The root and admin accounts are not affected.

MitigationImmediately change the default password for the Azure administrative user account on affected BIG-IP instances, or redeploy with a custom password. Consider disabling SSH access if not required.

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:= 12.0.0= 12.1.0= 12.1.1= 12.1.2= 13.0.0
Big Ip Application Acceleration ManagerApplication
Affected:= 12.0.0= 12.1.0= 12.1.1= 12.1.2= 13.0.0
Big Ip Advanced Firewall ManagerApplication
Affected:= 12.0.0= 12.1.0= 12.1.1= 12.1.2= 13.0.0
Big Ip Access Policy ManagerApplication
Affected:= 12.0.0= 12.1.0= 12.1.1= 12.1.2= 13.0.0
Big Ip Application Security ManagerApplication
Affected:= 12.0.0= 12.1.0= 12.1.1= 12.1.2= 13.0.0
Big Ip Domain Name SystemApplication
Affected:= 12.0.0= 12.1.0= 12.1.1= 12.1.2= 13.0.0
Big Ip Link ControllerApplication
Affected:= 12.0.0= 12.1.0= 12.1.1= 12.1.2= 13.0.0
Big Ip Policy Enforcement ManagerApplication
Affected:= 12.0.0= 12.1.0= 12.1.1= 12.1.2= 13.0.0

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
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

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

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. Confirm Azure deployment platform
    Verify that the F5 BIG-IP instance is deployed on Microsoft Azure cloud platform. Check via Azure portal, ARM template, or cloud provider metadata.
    Affected if The instance is deployed on Azure and meets other conditions - this vulnerability only applies to Azure-deployed instances.
  2. Check BIG-IP version
    Run 'tmsh show sys version' or access the Configuration Utility (Web UI) to view the installed BIG-IP version under System > Software Management > ISO Image or System > About.
    Affected if Version is 12.0.0, 12.1.0, 12.1.1, 12.1.2, or 13.0.0.
  3. Verify SSH service is accessible
    Confirm that the SSH service (port 22) is reachable on the BIG-IP management interface or self IP. Check via 'tmsh show sys sshd' or by attempting a network connectivity test.
    Affected if SSH is enabled and accessible - the vulnerability allows remote SSH access using the default password.
  4. Inspect Azure user account password configuration
    Review the Azure VM deployment settings or cloud-init configuration to determine if the default administrative user account password was changed from the deployment-time default. Check Azure activity logs and VM access blade for password change events.
    Affected if The Azure user account password remains at the default value set at deployment time, or no password change audit event is found.

A user is affected if the BIG-IP instance is deployed on Azure, runs version 12.0.0-12.1.2 or 13.0.0, has SSH accessible, and the Azure instance user account password was never changed from its default deployment value.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Immediately change the default password for the Azure administrative user account on affected BIG-IP instances, or redeploy with a custom password. Consider disabling SSH access if not required.

Recommended fix High confidence

F5 BIG-IP 12.1.3 or later (13.1.x recommended)

  1. 1. Identify all F5 BIG-IP Azure instances running versions 12.0.0 through 12.1.2 or 13.0.0
  2. 2. Immediately change the default password for any Azure-deployed administrative account using the command: tmsh modify auth user <username> password <new_secure_password>
  3. 3. For additional security, restrict SSH access to the management interface by configuring allowed source IP addresses via: tmsh modify sys sshd allow {<trusted_IPs>}
  4. 4. Upgrade the BIG-IP system to version 12.1.3 or later (13.1.0 or later recommended) using the F5 upgrade procedure: download the ISO from support.f5.com, upload via GUI or tmsh, and run: tmsh install sys software image <image_name> volume <volume_name>
Caveat Review F5 release notes for breaking changes between 12.x and 13.x versions before upgrading; test upgrade in non-production environment first

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Big Ip Local Traffic Manager Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
6.0 hours of engineering $1,090
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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-2017-6131 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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