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Actively exploited in the wild. This CVE is on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities list — treat remediation as urgent. Federal remediation due by 21 Nov 2023.
Big Ip Access Policy ManagerApplication · F5

CVE-2023-46748

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-10-26
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 17.1.1 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
In the wild Public exploit 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
An authenticated SQL injection vulnerability exists in the BIG-IP Configuration utility which may allow an authenticated attacker with network access to the Configuration utility through the BIG-IP management port and/or self IP addresses to execute arbitrary system commands.  Note: Software versions which have reached End of Technical Support (EoTS) are not evaluated

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

SQL injection vulnerability in BIG-IP Configuration utility allows authenticated attackers with network access to the management port or self IP addresses to execute arbitrary system commands. This is a critical SQLi-to-RCE path where the SQL injection permits command execution at the operating system level.

MitigationUpgrade BIG-IP to a fixed version per F5's security advisory; restrict management interface access to trusted networks and monitor for unauthorized administrative 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 Access Policy ManagerApplication
Affected:>= 13.1.0, <= 13.1.5>= 14.1.0, <= 14.1.5>= 15.1.0, <= 15.1.10>= 16.1.0, <= 16.1.4>= 17.1.0, <= 17.1.1
Big Ip Advanced Firewall ManagerApplication
Affected:>= 13.1.0, <= 13.1.5>= 14.1.0, <= 14.1.5>= 15.1.0, <= 15.1.10>= 16.1.0, <= 16.1.4>= 17.1.0, <= 17.1.1
Big Ip Carrier Grade NatApplication
Affected:>= 13.1.0, <= 13.1.5>= 14.1.0, <= 14.1.5>= 15.1.0, <= 15.1.10>= 16.1.0, <= 16.1.4>= 17.1.0, <= 17.1.1
Big Ip Ddos Hybrid DefenderApplication
Affected:>= 13.1.0, <= 13.1.5>= 14.1.0, <= 14.1.5>= 15.1.0, <= 15.1.10>= 16.1.0, <= 16.1.4>= 17.1.0, <= 17.1.1
Big Ip Ssl OrchestratorApplication
Affected:>= 13.1.0, <= 13.1.5>= 14.1.0, <= 14.1.5>= 15.1.0, <= 15.1.10>= 16.1.0, <= 16.1.4>= 17.1.0, <= 17.1.1
Big Ip Local Traffic ManagerApplication
Affected:>= 13.1.0, <= 13.1.5>= 14.1.0, <= 14.1.5>= 15.1.0, <= 15.1.10>= 16.1.0, <= 16.1.4>= 17.1.0, <= 17.1.1
Big Ip Policy Enforcement ManagerApplication
Affected:>= 13.1.0, <= 13.1.5>= 14.1.0, <= 14.1.5>= 15.1.0, <= 15.1.10>= 16.1.0, <= 16.1.4>= 17.1.0, <= 17.1.1
Big Ip Automation ToolchainApplication
Affected:>= 13.1.0, <= 13.1.5>= 14.1.0, <= 14.1.5>= 15.1.0, <= 15.1.10>= 16.1.0, <= 16.1.4>= 17.1.0, <= 17.1.1

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/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 the Configuration utility login page footer for the version number
    Affected if The installed version falls within 13.1.0-13.1.5, 14.1.0-14.1.5, 15.1.0-15.1.10, 16.1.0-16.1.4, or 17.1.0-17.1.1
  2. Confirm BIG-IP module deployment
    Run 'tmsh list sys provision' to list provisioned modules, or check which BIG-IP modules are licensed
    Affected if Any of these modules are provisioned: Access Policy Manager, Advanced Firewall Manager, Carrier Grade NAT, DDoS Hybrid Defender, SSL Orchestrator, Local Traffic Manager, Policy Enforcement Manager, or Automation Toolchain
  3. Verify Configuration utility accessibility
    Check if the BIG-IP management interface (port 443) or self IP addresses are reachable from network locations using 'tmsh list sys httpd' or by attempting a connection to the management IP
    Affected if The Configuration utility is exposed on accessible network interfaces beyond localhost
  4. Confirm authentication exposure
    Review network access lists and management IP restrictions using 'tmsh list sys management-ip' and check access policy settings
    Affected if The management interface or self IPs are accessible from untrusted networks or allow authentication for users who may be compromised

You are affected if your BIG-IP version is within any of the affected ranges AND the Configuration utility is accessible via management port or self IP addresses from a network where an attacker could obtain valid credentials.

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 17.1.1
Interim mitigation

Upgrade BIG-IP to a fixed version per F5's security advisory; restrict management interface access to trusted networks and monitor for unauthorized administrative activity.

Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to BIG-IP version 13.1.6, 14.1.6, 15.1.11, or 16.1.5 (or later) depending on your major version branch

  1. 1. Identify the exact BIG-IP module (APM, AFM, LTM, etc.) and version currently installed by running 'tmsh show sys version' or checking the BIG-IP Configuration utility version information.
  2. 2. Review the F5 KB article referenced in my.f5.com for this CVE to obtain the specific hotfix or patch applicable to your version.
  3. 3. Download the required hotfix or upgrade to a fixed version (13.1.6+, 14.1.6+, 15.1.11+, or 16.1.5+) from F5 Downloads.
  4. 4. Apply the hotfix/upgrade through the BIG-IP management interface or via tmsh: 'tmsh load sys ucs <backup_ucs>' after backing up the current configuration with 'tmsh save sys ucs pre-upgrade-backup'.
  5. 5. Verify the upgrade was successful by confirming the new version number and testing that the Configuration utility is accessible.
  6. 6. Validate that the SQL injection vulnerability is remediated by reviewing F5's published fix documentation.
Caveat Major version upgrades may require configuration compatibility review; always test in a non-production environment first and backup configuration before upgrading

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

Fix this in Big Ip Access Policy Manager Exploited in the wild — priority engagement
  • Consultation6.0 h
  • Implementation12.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
27.0 hours of engineering $4,800
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An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $7,680.

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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-2023-46748 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