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Big Ip Access Policy ManagerApplication · F5

CVE-2026-40618

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-05-13
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 17.5.1 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 SSL profile is configured on a virtual server on BIG-IP Virtual Edition (VE) without Intel QuickAssist Technology (QAT) or on BIG-IP hardware platforms with the database variable crypto.hwacceleration set to disabled, 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 in BIG-IP where TMM terminates when an SSL profile is configured on virtual servers running on VE without Intel QAT hardware or on hardware platforms with crypto.hwacceleration disabled, triggered by undisclosed traffic patterns.

MitigationApply F5's security patch when available. Until then, ensure hardware acceleration is enabled or evaluate SSL profile usage on affected deployments.

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:>= 17.1.0, <= 17.1.3>= 17.5.0, <= 17.5.1>= 16.1.0, <= 16.1.6= 21.0.0
Big Ip Advanced Firewall ManagerApplication
Affected:>= 17.1.0, <= 17.1.3>= 17.5.0, <= 17.5.1>= 16.1.0, <= 16.1.6= 21.0.0
Big Ip Advanced Web Application FirewallApplication
Affected:>= 17.1.0, <= 17.1.3>= 17.5.0, <= 17.5.1>= 16.1.0, <= 16.1.6= 21.0.0
Big Ip AnalyticsApplication
Affected:>= 17.1.0, <= 17.1.3>= 17.5.0, <= 17.5.1>= 16.1.0, <= 16.1.6= 21.0.0
Big Ip Application Acceleration ManagerApplication
Affected:>= 17.1.0, <= 17.1.3>= 17.5.0, <= 17.5.1>= 16.1.0, <= 16.1.6= 21.0.0
Big Ip Application Security ManagerApplication
Affected:>= 17.1.0, <= 17.1.3>= 17.5.0, <= 17.5.1>= 16.1.0, <= 16.1.6= 21.0.0
Big Ip Application Visibility And ReportingApplication
Affected:>= 17.1.0, <= 17.1.3>= 17.5.0, <= 17.5.1>= 16.1.0, <= 16.1.6= 21.0.0
Big Ip Automation ToolchainApplication
Affected:>= 17.1.0, <= 17.1.3>= 17.5.0, <= 17.5.1>= 16.1.0, <= 16.1.6= 21.0.0

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 BIG-IP version
    Run 'tmsh show sys version' or check the web UI under Device Overview > System Information > Version
    Affected if Version matches 17.1.0-17.1.3, 17.5.0-17.5.1, 16.1.0-16.1.6, or 21.0.0 exactly
  2. Verify SSL profiles are in use
    Run 'tmsh list ltm virtual' and look for 'ssl profile' entries in the virtual server configurations
    Affected if Any virtual server references an SSL profile (e.g., clientssl or serverssl)
  3. Determine platform type
    Run 'tmsh show sys platform' or check 'tmsh show sys hardware' to identify if the system is Virtual Edition (VE)
    Affected if Running on BIG-IP VE (Virtual Edition) without Intel QAT hardware
  4. Check crypto hardware acceleration status
    Run 'tmsh list sys crypto hw-acceleration' or inspect the crypto.hwacceleration setting under System > Configuration > Device > SSL Settings in the web UI
    Affected if crypto.hwacceleration is set to disabled or absent on hardware platforms

The system is affected if the version falls within the vulnerable range AND an SSL profile is configured on virtual servers running on VE without Intel QAT OR on hardware with crypto.hwacceleration disabled.

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 17.5.1
Interim mitigation

Apply F5's security patch when available. Until then, ensure hardware acceleration is enabled or evaluate SSL profile usage on affected deployments.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

BIG-IP 17.5.2+ or 16.1.7+ (depending on which major version branch is in use)

  1. 1. Identify the exact BIG-IP version currently installed by running 'tmsh show sys version' on the command line.
  2. 2. Determine which BIG-IP module (APM, AFM, AWM, etc.) has the vulnerable SSL profile configuration.
  3. 3. For virtual servers with SSL profiles, verify if the system is BIG-IP VE without Intel QAT, or if crypto.hwacceleration is disabled (check via 'tmsh list sys db crypto.hwacceleration').
  4. 4. If running an affected version (16.1.x, 17.1.0-17.1.3, 17.5.0-17.5.1, or 21.0.0), plan for an upgrade to a fixed release.
  5. 5. Upgrade to BIG-IP 17.5.2 or later (for 17.x line), or 16.1.7 or later (for 16.x line) - these contain the fix for the TMM termination issue.
  6. 6. After upgrade, verify the fix by confirming TMM no longer terminates with the described conditions (SSL profile without QAT/hw acceleration).
  7. 7. Alternatively, if immediate upgrade is not feasible, ensure crypto.hwacceleration is enabled on hardware platforms and avoid using SSL profiles on VE without QAT hardware.
Caveat Upgrading between major versions (e.g., 16.x to 17.x) may require compatibility review of existing configurations and iRules; minor version upgrades within same branch typically have lower risk

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-2026-40618 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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