Highly exploitable, CVE-2017-6168 poses a critical security risk that could lead to severe breaches.
Status: Deferred
Last updated: 🕜 20 Apr 2025, 01:37 UTC
Originally published on: 🕖 17 Nov 2017, 19:29 UTC
Time between publication and last update: 2710 days
CVSS Release: version 3
nvd@nist.gov
Primary
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N
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.
The exploitability of CVE-2017-6168 depends on two key factors: attack complexity (the level of effort required to execute an exploit) and privileges required (the access level an attacker needs).
CVE-2017-6168 presents a challenge to exploit due to its high attack complexity, but the absence of privilege requirements still makes it a viable target for skilled attackers. A thorough security review is advised.
A lower complexity and fewer privilege requirements make exploitation easier. Security teams should evaluate these aspects to determine the urgency of mitigation strategies, such as patch management and access control policies.
Attack Complexity (AC) measures the difficulty in executing an exploit. A high AC means that specific conditions must be met, making an attack more challenging, while a low AC means the vulnerability can be exploited with minimal effort.
Privileges Required (PR) determine the level of system access necessary for an attack. Vulnerabilities requiring no privileges are more accessible to attackers, whereas high privilege requirements limit exploitation to authorized users with elevated access.
Above is the CVSS Sub-score Breakdown for CVE-2017-6168, illustrating how Base, Impact, and Exploitability factors combine to form the overall severity rating. A higher sub-score typically indicates a more severe or easier-to-exploit vulnerability.
Below is the Impact Analysis for CVE-2017-6168, showing how Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability might be affected if the vulnerability is exploited. Higher values usually signal greater potential damage.
The EPSS score estimates the probability that this vulnerability will be exploited in the near future.
EPSS Score: 0.164% (probability of exploit)
EPSS Percentile: 54.43%
(lower percentile = lower relative risk)
This vulnerability is less risky than approximately 45.57% of others.
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