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Big Ip Access Policy ManagerApplication · F5

CVE-2025-46405

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-08-13
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 15.1.10.8 / 16.1.6 or later.
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
When Network Access is configured on a BIG-IP APM virtual server, undisclosed traffic can cause the Traffic Management Microkernel (TMM) to terminate. 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 · moderate confidence

A denial-of-service vulnerability exists in F5 BIG-IP APM where the Traffic Management Microkernel (TMM) can terminate when Network Access is configured on an APM virtual server and the system receives undisclosed malicious traffic. This results in service disruption as TMM handles all traffic processing for the virtual server.

MitigationApply the vendor patch when available. Until then, evaluate whether Network Access functionality is essential; if not, disable it on affected APM virtual servers to reduce attack surface. Implement additional network filtering upstream as a compensating control.

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:>= 15.1.0, < 15.1.10.8>= 16.1.0, < 16.1.6>= 17.1.0, < 17.1.2.2

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/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. Check the installed BIG-IP APM version
    Use the command 'tmsh show /sys version' or access the BIG-IP GUI under System > Software Management > Software List to identify the installed version of BIG-IP and APM.
    Affected if The version falls within >= 15.1.0, < 15.1.10.8 OR >= 16.1.0, < 16.1.6 OR >= 17.1.0, < 17.1.2.2.
  2. Confirm APM is provisioned
    Run 'tmsh show /sys provision' or check in the GUI under System > Resource Provisioning to verify that APM (Access Policy Manager) is provisioned on the system.
    Affected if APM is not provisioned, the vulnerability does not apply.
  3. Identify APM virtual servers with Network Access configured
    Run 'tmsh list /ltm virtual' to list all virtual servers, then filter for those with 'apm' profile or access policy assigned. Use 'tmsh list /ltm virtual <name> access-profile' to check each for an access profile.
    Affected if No APM virtual servers exist, the vulnerability cannot be exploited.
  4. Verify Network Access is enabled on the APM policy
    Access the APM configuration via 'tmsh edit /apm policy access-policy <policyname>' or through the GUI under Access Policy > Access Profiles. Inspect the policy to confirm the Network Access resource is included and active.
    Affected if The specific APM virtual server has Network Access resource configured and enabled in its access policy.

A user is affected if they run a vulnerable BIG-IP APM version with at least one APM virtual server that has Network Access functionality configured and enabled.

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 15.1.10.8 / 16.1.6 / 17.1.2.2 or later
Fixed in 15.1.10.816.1.617.1.2.2
Interim mitigation

Apply the vendor patch when available. Until then, evaluate whether Network Access functionality is essential; if not, disable it on affected APM virtual servers to reduce attack surface. Implement additional network filtering upstream as a compensating control.

Recommended fix High confidence

15.1.10.8 (or later 15.1.x), 16.1.6 (or later 16.1.x), or 17.1.2.2 (or later 17.1.x) depending on your major version branch

  1. 1. Inventory all BIG-IP APM systems to identify those running affected versions (15.1.0-15.1.10.7, 16.1.0-16.1.5, 17.1.0-17.1.2.1)
  2. 2. Determine which major version line (15.1.x, 16.1.x, or 17.1.x) each affected device is running
  3. 3. Schedule a maintenance window for the upgrade
  4. 4. Back up the BIG-IP configuration using 'tmsh save sys config' or via the web UI
  5. 5. Download the appropriate hotfix or upgrade image from F5 Networks (my.f5.com): For 15.1.x: 15.1.10.8 or later; For 16.1.x: 16.1.6 or later; For 17.1.x: 17.1.2.2 or later
  6. 6. Upload and install the upgrade image via tmsh ('tmsh install sys software') or the web UI
  7. 7. Reboot the device after upgrade completion
  8. 8. Verify the new version is running: 'tmsh show sys version'
Caveat Upgrading across major version lines (e.g., 15.1.x to 16.1.x or 16.1.x to 17.1.x) may introduce behavioral changes; review F5 release notes for compatibility considerations before planning such upgrades

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

Fix this in Big Ip Access Policy Manager Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
22.0 hours of engineering $3,860
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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-2025-46405 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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What belongs here
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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