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Big Ip Local Traffic ManagerApplication · F5

CVE-2020-5888

HIGH · 8.1 CVSS v3.1 Published 2020-04-30
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 14.1.2.4 / 15.0.1.3 or later.
See remediation →
86/100
Remediation priority · High
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
On versions 15.1.0-15.1.0.1, 15.0.0-15.0.1.2, and 14.1.0-14.1.2.3, BIG-IP Virtual Edition (VE) may expose a mechanism for adjacent network (layer 2) attackers to access local daemons and bypass port lockdown settings.

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 Virtual Edition (VE) versions 14.1.0-14.1.2.3, 15.0.0-15.0.1.2, and 15.1.0-15.1.0.1 contain a vulnerability allowing adjacent network (Layer 2) attackers to bypass port lockdown settings and access local daemons, potentially giving them unauthorized access to internal services that should be protected.

MitigationUpgrade BIG-IP VE to a version beyond 15.1.0.1, 15.0.1.2, or 14.1.2.3 as specified in the F5 advisory. If immediate patching is not possible, enforce strict Layer 2 access controls and monitor for suspicious adjacent network activity.

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:>= 14.1.0, < 14.1.2.4>= 15.0.0, < 15.0.1.3>= 15.1.0, < 15.1.0.2
Big Ip Application Acceleration ManagerApplication
Affected:>= 14.1.0, < 14.1.2.4>= 15.0.0, < 15.0.1.3>= 15.1.0, < 15.1.0.2
Big Ip Advanced Firewall ManagerApplication
Affected:>= 14.1.0, < 14.1.2.4>= 15.0.0, < 15.0.1.3>= 15.1.0, < 15.1.0.2
Big Ip AnalyticsApplication
Affected:>= 14.0.0, < 14.1.2.4>= 15.0.0, < 15.0.1.3>= 15.1.0, < 15.1.0.2
Big Ip Access Policy ManagerApplication
Affected:>= 14.0.0, < 14.1.2.4>= 15.0.0, < 15.0.1.3>= 15.1.0, < 15.1.0.2
Big Ip Application Security ManagerApplication
Affected:>= 14.0.0, < 14.1.2.4>= 15.0.0, < 15.0.1.3>= 15.1.0, < 15.1.0.2
Big Ip Domain Name SystemApplication
Affected:>= 14.0.0, < 14.1.2.4>= 15.0.0, < 15.0.1.3>= 15.1.0, < 15.1.0.2
Big Ip Fraud Protection ServiceApplication
Affected:>= 14.0.0, < 14.1.2.4>= 15.0.0, < 15.0.1.3>= 15.1.0, < 15.1.0.2

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
Adjacent
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/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. Determine BIG-IP software version
    Run 'tmsh show sys version' or 'bigtop -v' from the command line to obtain the installed BIG-IP version.
    Affected if Version falls within 14.1.0-14.1.2.3, 15.0.0-15.0.1.2, or 15.1.0-15.1.0.1.
  2. Verify port lockdown configuration
    In the web UI, navigate to Network > Port Lockdown, or via CLI run 'tmsh list sys db port-lockdown' to see if any port lockdown rules are defined.
    Affected if Port lockdown rules exist and are intended to restrict access to local daemons.
  3. Check network interface exposure
    Review the management interface and self IP addresses via 'tmsh list net self' and 'tmsh list sys management-ip'. Determine if the device is reachable from adjacent Layer 2 networks.
    Affected if The management interface or self IPs are accessible from untrusted adjacent networks (not isolated by VLAN segmentation).

The environment is affected if the installed BIG-IP version is within the vulnerable ranges AND port lockdown is configured to restrict access AND the device is reachable from adjacent Layer 2 networks that could contain attackers.

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 14.1.2.4 / 15.0.1.3 / 15.1.0.2 or later
Fixed in 14.1.2.415.0.1.315.1.0.2
Interim mitigation

Upgrade BIG-IP VE to a version beyond 15.1.0.1, 15.0.1.2, or 14.1.2.3 as specified in the F5 advisory. If immediate patching is not possible, enforce strict Layer 2 access controls and monitor for suspicious adjacent network activity.

Fix this in Big Ip Local Traffic Manager Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
12.0 hours of engineering $2,130
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,408.

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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-2020-5888 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