CVE-2022-23021Network attack vector

Service interruption via null pointer dereference

Published Jan 25, 2022 · Updated Aug 3, 2024

Denial of service in F5 BIG-IP 16.1.x before 16.1.2 allows remote attackers to terminate TMM with crafted HTTP requests. Request processing under an LTM HTTP redirect rule, APM Access Profile, or Explicit HTTP Proxy dereferences a null pointer and terminates the Traffic Management Microkernel. No authentication or user interaction is required, but one of those configurations must be enabled; termination interrupts traffic handled by the affected TMM instance.

CVSS severity7.5
High
EPSS probability0.92%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
Coverage for this vulnerability

See if you're affected

Explore vulnerability checks for your environment with Hinoki.

Book a demo

Summary

What happened

Denial of service in F5 BIG-IP 16.1.x before 16.1.2 allows remote attackers to terminate TMM with crafted HTTP requests. Request processing under an LTM HTTP redirect rule, APM Access Profile, or Explicit HTTP Proxy dereferences a null pointer and terminates the Traffic Management Microkernel. No authentication or user interaction is required, but one of those configurations must be enabled; termination interrupts traffic handled by the affected TMM instance.

The record

CVE
CVE-2022-23021
Published
Jan 25, 2022
Updated
Aug 3, 2024
Vendor
F5 Networks
Product
BIG-IP
Classifications
CWE-476, T1499.004
Attack vector
network
Privileges
unauthenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Jan 25, 2022CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Aug 3, 2024Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

Compare your product and version with the public record. A matching version still requires validation against your environment.

Is a vulnerable build present?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=16.1.x before 16.1.2

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectornetwork
Required privilegesunauthenticated

What is affected?

F5 Networks · BIG-IPversion=16.1.x before 16.1.2

Published CVSS scores

7.1NIST NVDAV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:N/I:N/A:C
7.5NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectornetwork
Privilegesunauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-476NULL Pointer Dereference
T1499.004Application or System Exploitation

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

See the directory against your own environment.

Your stack

Check the software in your environment

Book a demo to see how Hinoki identifies affected software and validates exploitability in your environment.

Book a demo