How severe is CVE-2017-6168?

CVE-2017-6168 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 7.4, rated high severity. It is exploitable over network with high attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability none.

Is CVE-2017-6168 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 22% (97th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2017-6168?

CVE-2017-6168 primarily affects F5 Big-ip Ltm. In total, 19 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.

How do I fix CVE-2017-6168?

Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its high severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.

When was CVE-2017-6168 published?

CVE-2017-6168 was published on 2017-11-17 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2017-6168

CVE-2017-6168 is a high-severity vulnerability in F5 Big-ip Ltm with a CVSS 3.x base score of 7.4. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score of 22% places it in the 97th percentile, indicating an elevated likelihood of exploitation. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-203.

Key facts

Severity: High (CVSS 3.x base score 7.4)
CVSS v2: 4.3
EPSS exploit prediction: 22% (97th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-203
Affected product: F5 Big-ip Ltm
Published: 2017-11-17
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

On BIG-IP versions 11.6.0-11.6.2 (fixed in 11.6.2 HF1), 12.0.0-12.1.2 HF1 (fixed in 12.1.2 HF2), or 13.0.0-13.0.0 HF2 (fixed in 13.0.0 HF3) a virtual server configured with a Client SSL profile may be vulnerable to an Adaptive Chosen Ciphertext attack (AKA Bleichenbacher attack) against RSA, which when exploited, may result in plaintext recovery of encrypted messages and/or a Man-in-the-middle (MiTM) attack, despite the attacker not having gained access to the server's private key itself, aka a ROBOT attack.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2017-6168?: On BIG-IP versions 11.6.0-11.6.2 (fixed in 11.6.2 HF1), 12.0.0-12.1.2 HF1 (fixed in 12.1.2 HF2), or 13.0.0-13.0.0 HF2 (fixed in 13.0.0 HF3) a virtual server configured with a Client SSL profile may be vulnerable to an Adaptive Chosen Ciphertext attack (AKA Bleichenbacher attack) against RSA, which when exploited, may result in plaintext recovery of encrypted messages and/or a Man-in-the-middle (MiTM) attack, despite the attacker not having gained access to the server's private key itself, aka a ROBOT attack.
How severe is CVE-2017-6168?: CVE-2017-6168 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 7.4, rated high severity. It is exploitable over network with high attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability none.
Is CVE-2017-6168 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 22% (97th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2017-6168?: CVE-2017-6168 primarily affects F5 Big-ip Ltm. In total, 19 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.
How do I fix CVE-2017-6168?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its high severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.
When was CVE-2017-6168 published?: CVE-2017-6168 was published on 2017-11-17 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (19)

cpe:2.3:a:f5:big-ip_ltm:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:f5:big-ip_ltm:13.0.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:f5:big-ip_application_acceleration_manager:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:f5:big-ip_application_acceleration_manager:13.0.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:f5:big-ip_afm:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:f5:big-ip_afm:13.0.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:f5:big-ip_analytics:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:f5:big-ip_analytics:13.0.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:f5:big-ip_apm:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:f5:big-ip_apm:13.0.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:f5:big-ip_asm:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:f5:big-ip_asm:13.0.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:f5:big-ip_link_controller:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:f5:big-ip_link_controller:13.0.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:f5:big-ip_pem:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:f5:big-ip_pem:13.0.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:f5:websafe:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:f5:websafe:11.6.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:f5:websafe:13.0.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

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