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Big Ip Local Traffic ManagerApplication · F5

CVE-2019-6597

HIGH · 7.2 CVSS v3.0 Published 2019-03-13
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 13.1.1.1 or later.
See remediation →
78/100
Remediation priority · High
Remotely reachable 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 BIG-IP 13.0.0-13.1.1.1, 12.1.0-12.1.3.7, 11.6.1-11.6.3.2, or 11.5.1-11.5.8 or Enterprise Manager 3.1.1, when authenticated administrative users run commands in the Traffic Management User Interface (TMUI), also referred to as the BIG-IP Configuration utility, restrictions on allowed commands may not be enforced.

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

Authenticated administrative users on F5 BIG-IP and Enterprise Manager devices can bypass command restrictions in the TMUI (Traffic Management User Interface / Configuration utility). The vulnerability allows privileged users to execute commands they should not have access to, representing a privilege escalation issue within the web-based management interface.

MitigationApply the appropriate F5 security update or upgrade to a fixed version as specified in the F5 advisory. Limit administrative access to TMUI to only trusted, essential personnel until patches are applied.

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:>= 11.5.1, <= 11.5.8>= 11.6.1, <= 11.6.3.2>= 12.1.0, <= 12.1.3.7>= 13.0.0, <= 13.1.1.1
Big Ip Application Acceleration ManagerApplication
Affected:>= 11.5.1, <= 11.5.8>= 11.6.1, <= 11.6.3.2>= 12.1.0, <= 12.1.3.7>= 13.0.0, <= 13.1.1.1
Big Ip Advanced Firewall ManagerApplication
Affected:>= 11.5.1, <= 11.5.8>= 11.6.1, <= 11.6.3.2>= 12.1.0, <= 12.1.3.7>= 13.0.0, <= 13.1.1.1
Big Ip AnalyticsApplication
Affected:>= 11.5.1, <= 11.5.8>= 11.6.1, <= 11.6.3.2>= 12.1.0, <= 12.1.3.7>= 13.0.0, <= 13.1.1.1
Big Ip Access Policy ManagerApplication
Affected:>= 11.5.1, <= 11.5.8>= 11.6.1, <= 11.6.3.2>= 12.1.0, <= 12.1.3.7>= 13.0.0, <= 13.1.1.1
Big Ip Application Security ManagerApplication
Affected:>= 11.5.1, <= 11.5.8>= 11.6.1, <= 11.6.3.2>= 12.1.0, <= 12.1.3.7>= 13.0.0, <= 13.1.1.1
Big Ip Domain Name SystemApplication
Affected:>= 11.5.1, <= 11.5.8>= 11.6.1, <= 11.6.3.2>= 12.1.0, <= 12.1.3.7>= 13.0.0, <= 13.1.1.1
Big Ip Edge GatewayWeb browser
Affected:>= 11.5.1, <= 11.5.8>= 11.6.1, <= 11.6.3.2>= 12.1.0, <= 12.1.3.7>= 13.0.0, <= 13.1.1.1

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
High
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/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. Identify installed BIG-IP version
    Run 'tmsh show /sys version' or check /etc/product_version on the F5 device
    Affected if The displayed version falls within 11.5.1-11.5.8, 11.6.1-11.6.3.2, 12.1.0-12.1.3.7, or 13.0.0-13.1.1.1
  2. Confirm TMUI is accessible
    Verify the Traffic Management User Interface (Configuration utility) is enabled by checking the httpd configuration or attempting to access the web interface on port 443
    Affected if TMUI is exposed and accessible on the network
  3. Identify administrative users with TMUI access
    Use 'tmsh list /auth user' to list all configured users and check their shell and role assignments
    Affected if There are any users with Administrator or resource administrator roles configured in TMUI

If the installed version is within the affected ranges AND TMUI is accessible with administrative users configured, the environment is vulnerable to privilege escalation via command restriction bypass.

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 13.1.1.1
Interim mitigation

Apply the appropriate F5 security update or upgrade to a fixed version as specified in the F5 advisory. Limit administrative access to TMUI to only trusted, essential personnel until patches are applied.

Fix this in Big Ip Local Traffic Manager Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
12.0 hours of engineering $2,080
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,328.

Scan for this in your stack

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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-2019-6597 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