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Big Ip Next Cloud Native Network FunctionsApplication · F5

CVE-2025-46706

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-10-15
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 16.1.6 / 17.1.2.2 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 an iRule containing the HTTP::respond command is configured on a virtual server, undisclosed requests can cause an increase in memory resource utilization. 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

This is a denial-of-service vulnerability in F5 BIG-IP where iRules containing the HTTP::respond command can cause excessive memory consumption when processing certain undisclosed requests. The vulnerability allows an attacker to trigger memory growth by sending specific requests to virtual servers configured with such iRules, potentially leading to resource exhaustion.

MitigationReview all virtual servers with iRules that use HTTP::respond command and implement request throttling or modify iRule logic to prevent unbounded memory allocation. Consider applying traffic filtering or rate limiting as an interim 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 Next Cloud Native Network FunctionsApplication
Affected:>= 1.1.0, <= 1.4.1
Big Ip Next Service Proxy For KubernetesApplication
Affected:>= 1.7.0, <= 1.9.2
Big Ip Access Policy ManagerApplication
Affected:>= 16.1.0, < 16.1.6>= 17.1.0, < 17.1.2.2
Big Ip Advanced Firewall ManagerApplication
Affected:>= 16.1.0, < 16.1.6>= 17.1.0, < 17.1.2.2
Big Ip Advanced Web Application FirewallApplication
Affected:>= 16.1.0, < 16.1.6>= 17.1.0, < 17.1.2.2
Big Ip AnalyticsApplication
Affected:>= 16.1.0, < 16.1.6>= 17.1.0, < 17.1.2.2
Big Ip Application Acceleration ManagerApplication
Affected:>= 16.1.0, < 16.1.6>= 17.1.0, < 17.1.2.2
Big Ip Application Security ManagerApplication
Affected:>= 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. Identify the installed F5 BIG-IP product and version
    Use the command 'tmsh show sys version' or check the web UI under System > Software > Image List to determine the exact product module and version number installed
    Affected if The version falls within the affected ranges: 1.1.0-1.4.1 for Next Cloud Native Network Functions, 1.7.0-1.9.2 for Next Service Proxy For Kubernetes, 16.1.0-<16.1.6 or 17.1.0-<17.1.2.2 for Access Policy Manager, AFM, AWM, Analytics, AAM, or ASM
  2. List all virtual servers with iRules attached
    Run 'tmsh list ltm virtual' to enumerate virtual servers, then run 'tmsh list ltm virtual <name> rules' for each to identify which have iRules configured
    Affected if Any virtual server has one or more iRules assigned to it
  3. Inspect iRules for HTTP::respond command usage
    For each iRule identified, run 'tmsh list ltm rule <rule_name>' to view the iRule content, then search for the string 'HTTP::respond' within the iRule definition
    Affected if Any iRule contains the HTTP::respond command, regardless of arguments
  4. Monitor memory consumption on the BIG-IP device
    Run 'tmsh show sys memory' or use the web UI under Statistics > Module Statistics > System > CPU and Memory to observe current memory usage trends over time
    Affected if Memory usage shows unusual growth or approaches resource limits, especially on systems with iRules using HTTP::respond
  5. Review virtual server traffic patterns
    Use 'tmsh show ltm virtual <name> stats' to view request statistics, and check logs under /var/log/ltm for any abnormal request patterns or errors
    Affected if High request volumes are being processed by virtual servers with HTTP::respond iRules, or anomalous traffic patterns are detected

Your environment is affected if you are running any of the listed product versions AND you have virtual servers configured with iRules that contain the HTTP::respond command processing traffic.

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 16.1.6 / 17.1.2.2 or later
Fixed in 16.1.617.1.2.2
Interim mitigation

Review all virtual servers with iRules that use HTTP::respond command and implement request throttling or modify iRule logic to prevent unbounded memory allocation. Consider applying traffic filtering or rate limiting as an interim control.

Recommended fix High confidence

BIG-IP 16.1.6, 17.1.2.2 or later; BIG-IP Next CNF 1.4.2 or later; BIG-IP Next SPK 1.9.3 or later

  1. 1. Identify all virtual servers with iRules containing the HTTP::respond command in your F5 BIG-IP or BIG-IP Next deployment
  2. 2. For BIG-IP (traditional) versions 16.1.x: upgrade to version 16.1.6 or later
  3. 3. For BIG-IP (traditional) versions 17.1.x: upgrade to version 17.1.2.2 or later
  4. 4. For BIG-IP Next Cloud Native Network Functions: upgrade to version 1.4.2 or later
  5. 5. For BIG-IP Next Service Proxy for Kubernetes: upgrade to version 1.9.3 or later
  6. 6. After upgrade, monitor memory utilization to confirm the issue is resolved
Caveat Review iRule compatibility after upgrading; ensure HTTP::respond commands function as expected in the new version

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

Fix this in Big Ip Next Cloud Native Network Functions Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
21.0 hours of engineering $3,680
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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-2025-46706 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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