On F5 BIG-IP APM 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 to 13.1.5, and all versions of 12.1.x and 11.6.x, when APM is configured on a virtual server and the associated access profile is configured with APM AAA NTLM Auth, undisclosed requests can cause an increase in internal resource utilization. Note: Software versions which have reached End of Technical Support (EoTS) are not evaluated
The product does not properly control the allocation and maintenance of a limited resource.
| Name | Vendor | Start Version | End Version |
|---|---|---|---|
| Big-ip_access_policy_manager | F5 | 13.1.0 (including) | 13.1.0 (including) |
| Big-ip_access_policy_manager | F5 | 13.1.1 (including) | 13.1.1 (including) |
| Big-ip_access_policy_manager | F5 | 13.1.3 (including) | 13.1.3 (including) |
| Big-ip_access_policy_manager | F5 | 13.1.4 (including) | 13.1.4 (including) |
| Big-ip_access_policy_manager | F5 | 13.1.5 (including) | 13.1.5 (including) |
| Big-ip_access_policy_manager | F5 | 14.1.0 (including) | 14.1.0 (including) |
| Big-ip_access_policy_manager | F5 | 14.1.2 (including) | 14.1.2 (including) |
| Big-ip_access_policy_manager | F5 | 14.1.3 (including) | 14.1.3 (including) |
| Big-ip_access_policy_manager | F5 | 14.1.4 (including) | 14.1.4 (including) |
| Big-ip_access_policy_manager | F5 | 15.1.0 (including) | 15.1.0 (including) |
| Big-ip_access_policy_manager | F5 | 15.1.1 (including) | 15.1.1 (including) |
| Big-ip_access_policy_manager | F5 | 15.1.2 (including) | 15.1.2 (including) |
| Big-ip_access_policy_manager | F5 | 15.1.3 (including) | 15.1.3 (including) |
| Big-ip_access_policy_manager | F5 | 15.1.4 (including) | 15.1.4 (including) |
| Big-ip_access_policy_manager | F5 | 15.1.5 (including) | 15.1.5 (including) |
| Big-ip_access_policy_manager | F5 | 16.1.0 (including) | 16.1.0 (including) |
| Big-ip_access_policy_manager | F5 | 16.1.1 (including) | 16.1.1 (including) |
| Big-ip_access_policy_manager | F5 | 16.1.2 (including) | 16.1.2 (including) |
Mitigation of resource exhaustion attacks requires that the target system either:
The first of these solutions is an issue in itself though, since it may allow attackers to prevent the use of the system by a particular valid user. If the attacker impersonates the valid user, they may be able to prevent the user from accessing the server in question.
The second solution is simply difficult to effectively institute – and even when properly done, it does not provide a full solution. It simply makes the attack require more resources on the part of the attacker.