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CVE-2021-22986· NVD / CVE Program· CNA f5

On BIG-IP versions 16.0.x before 16.0.1.1, 15.1.x before 15.1.2.1, 14.1.x before 14.1.4, 13.1.x before 13.1.3.6, and 12.1.x before 12.1.5.3

On BIG-IP versions 16.0.x before 16.0.1.1, 15.1.x before 15.1.2.1, 14.1.x before 14.1.4, 13.1.x before 13.1.3.6, and 12.1.x before 12.1.5.3 amd BIG-IQ 7.1.0.x before 7.1.0.3 and 7.0.0.x before 7.0.0.2, the iControl REST interface has an unauthenticated remote command execution vulnerability. Note: Software versions which have reached End of Software Development (EoSD) are not evaluated.

CriticalCVSS 9.8 · v3.1KEVWeaponized No fix recorded
Published
Mar 31, 2021
Updated
Jun 16, 2026
EPSS
99.9% · 100th percentile
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Report tools

JSON

Action score

99

Now

Patch today or shut off access.

CVSS
39 / 40 · 9.8 / 10
CISA KEV
30 / 30 · Listed
EPSS
30 / 30 · 99.9%

CISA SSVC decision

Exploitation
active
Automatable
yes
Technical impact
total

Vulnrichment: CISA's decision-tree inputs.

Actively exploited in the wild

CISA added this to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on Nov 3, 2021. That signals real attacks, not theory.

Remediation deadline for government agencies: Nov 17, 2021.

Known to be used in ransomware campaigns.

Affected systems

VendorProduct
f5big-ip access policy manager
f5big-ip advanced firewall manager
f5big-ip advanced web application firewall
f5big-ip analytics
f5big-ip application acceleration manager
f5big-ip application security manager
f5big-ip ddos hybrid defender
f5big-ip domain name system
f5big-ip fraud protection service
f5big-ip global traffic manager
f5big-ip link controller
f5big-ip local traffic manager

and 3 more

Affected versions

NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.

  • f5 big-ip access policy manager12.1.0 and later · before 12.1.5.3
  • f5 big-ip access policy manager13.1.0 and later · before 13.1.3.6
  • f5 big-ip access policy manager14.1.0 and later · before 14.1.4
  • f5 big-ip access policy manager15.1.0 and later · before 15.1.2.1
  • f5 big-ip access policy manager16.0.0 and later · before 16.0.1.1
  • f5 big-ip advanced firewall manager12.1.0 and later · before 12.1.5.3
  • f5 big-ip advanced firewall manager13.1.0 and later · before 13.1.3.6
  • f5 big-ip advanced firewall manager14.1.0 and later · before 14.1.4
  • f5 big-ip advanced firewall manager15.1.0 and later · before 15.1.2.1
  • f5 big-ip advanced firewall manager16.0.0 and later · before 16.0.1.1
  • f5 big-ip advanced web application firewall12.1.0 and later · before 12.1.5.3
  • f5 big-ip advanced web application firewall13.1.0 and later · before 13.1.3.6
  • f5 big-ip advanced web application firewall14.1.0 and later · before 14.1.4
  • f5 big-ip advanced web application firewall15.1.0 and later · before 15.1.2.1
  • f5 big-ip advanced web application firewall16.0.0 and later · before 16.0.1.1
  • f5 big-ip analytics12.1.0 and later · before 12.1.5.3
  • f5 big-ip analytics13.1.0 and later · before 13.1.3.6
  • f5 big-ip analytics14.1.0 and later · before 14.1.4
  • f5 big-ip analytics15.1.0 and later · before 15.1.2.1
  • f5 big-ip analytics16.0.0 and later · before 16.0.1.1

Versions reported by the vendor

Affected version ranges reported by the assigning authority (f5). Independent of NVD's CPE analysis and usually ahead of it.

  • n/a BIG-IP; BIG-IQ

    • BIG-IP 16.0.x before 16.0.1.1, 15.1.x before 15.1.2.1, 14.1.x before 14.1.4, 13.1.x before 13.1.3.6, 12.1.x before 12.1.5.3, BIG-IQ 7.1.0.x before 7.1.0.3, 7.0.0.x before 7.0.0.2affected

Same product

f5: all records

Other highest-scoring records for the same primary product.

  • CVE-2022-1388On F5 BIG-IP 16.1.x versions prior to 16.1.2.2, 15.1.x versions prior to 15.1.5.1, 14.1.x versions prior to 14.1.4.6, 13.1.x versions prior KEV
    99Now
  • CVE-2020-5902In BIG-IP versions 15.0.0-15.1.0.3, 14.1.0-14.1.2.5, 13.1.0-13.1.3.3, 12.1.0-12.1.5.1, and 11.6.1-11.6.5.1, the Traffic Management User InteKEV
    99Now
  • CVE-2023-46747BIG-IP Configuration utility unauthenticated remote code execution vulnerabilityKEV
    98Now
  • CVE-2021-22991On BIG-IP versions 16.0.x before 16.0.1.1, 15.1.x before 15.1.2.1, 14.1.x before 14.1.4, 13.1.x before 13.1.3.6, and 12.1.x before 12.1.5.3,KEV
    87Now
  • CVE-2026-94127BIG-IP APM OAuth vulnerabilityKEV
    68This week
  • CVE-2025-53521BigIP APM VulnerabilityKEV
    68This week

Remediation

Which version to upgrade to

Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.

No fix version is recorded for this entry. Check the references for vendor advisories.

Exploit status

Weaponized

A ready exploit tool or active in-the-wild use is known for this vulnerability. This should be your top priority.

Evidence

  • Metasploit module ×1
  • Exploit-DB entry ×1
  • Nuclei detection template ×1
  • Proof-of-concept repository on GitHub ×15

Noroxi does not host or link to exploit code. Metasploit module names and Nuclei template ids are shown (names, not code); Exploit-DB entries and PoC repositories are given as counts only.

Public exploit evidence
SourceKindDate
Exploit-DB entrywebapps2021-04-02
Metasploit moduleexploit/linux/http/f5_icontrol_rest_ssrf_rceF5 iControl REST Unauthenticated SSRF Token Generation RCEexploit2021-03-10
Nuclei detection templateNuclei template CVE-2021-22986 —
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:512021-03-17
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:262021-03-19
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:02021-03-20
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:42021-03-21
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:02021-03-22
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:912021-03-22
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:02021-03-22
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:32021-03-23
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:82021-03-26

Research context

For pentesters and researchers: attack profile, score disagreement, timeline, patch commits, credits, variant and chain candidates, bug bounty scope. All derived from existing data; no exploit code.

Timeline

From publication to today: proof of concept, Metasploit module, CISA KEV and fix record. Dates are as reported by the sources.

  1. Metasploit-21 d
  2. First PoC-14 d
  3. Published
  4. CISA KEV+217 d
  5. TodaySep 29, 2026+2008 d
EPSS, last 120 days

FIRST EPSS daily score; only changes of 0.01 or more are recorded (step chart).

Patch and commit links

Commit, PR and diff links among the references. A starting point for patch-diffing and variant hunting; fixes, not exploits.

No commit or PR link among the references.

Credits

All researchers

Finders, reporters and analysts named in the CNA record. Click a name for that researcher’s other records.

No credits in the CNA record.

Variant candidates

Same product, same weakness class, within 18 months. If the patch missed the root cause, the sibling bug is here.

No nightly-computed relations.

Chain candidates

An authentication bypass and a privilege-requiring bug in the same product, published close together: combined they may become an unauthenticated path.

—

Bug bounty scope

No known public program.

Source: bounty-targets-data (public HackerOne, Bugcrowd, Intigriti, YesWeHack listings).

Technical details

Attack conditions

  • Anyone who can reach it over the internet can trigger it.
  • No account or password is required.
  • No user action is required.
  • No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.

If successful

Confidentiality
high · data can be read
Integrity
high · data or configuration can be modified
Availability
high · the service can be disrupted
Attack vector
Network
Attack complexity
Low
Privileges required
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality impact
High
Integrity impact
High
Availability impact
High

Weakness class (CWE)

CWE-918 · Server-Side Request Forgery (SSRF)

CVSS vector

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

nvd-primary

Attack context

MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.

ATT&CK techniques

—

Noroxi analysis

No Noroxi analysis for this record yet

We don't hand-write analysis for all 385,000+ vulnerabilities; that wouldn't be honest. For notable, high-impact vulnerabilities our team writes the mechanism, detection and remediation steps.

We use this product, ask for help

Change log

No changes recorded on tracked fields yet. Score, KEV, exploit maturity and fix status changes appear here.

References

Vendor advisories and official records. Exploit/PoC links are deliberately left out.

All records