Exploited CVEs / F5 / CVE-2021-22986
CVE-2021-22986
F5 BIG-IP and BIG-IQ Centralized Management iControl REST Remote Code Execution Vulnerability. Exploitation in the wild is confirmed by CISA, not predicted, and the vulnerability is known to be used in ransomware campaigns. Federal agencies were required to remediate by 2021-11-17 (that deadline has passed); treat that date as the outer bound for your own environment. Check the vendor security advisory for the fix.
Risk summary
Actively exploited F5 BIG-IP and BIG-IQ Centralized Management vulnerability, Critical severity, CVSS 9.8. Added to the CISA KEV catalog 2021-11-03.
Senserva AI Opinion for CVE-2021-22986
F5 BIG-IP and BIG-IQ's iControl REST interface allows unauthenticated attackers with network access to execute system commands, create or delete files, and disable services on the device that load-balances your critical applications. Ransomware use is confirmed and the EPSS score sits at 100%. Critical Severity at CVSS 9.8.
Do this: Confirm iControl REST is unreachable from the internet and patched, then review BIG-IP devices for unauthorized accounts or configuration changes.
AI-generated from public data, 2026-07-07. Verify against the vendor advisory before acting.
Senserva AI Opinion and rich prompt for CVE-2021-22986
Copy this prompt into Claude, ChatGPT, or Copilot. The facts are included, sourced from this page.
Updated August 14, 2026. Data refreshed on every build from MSRC, CISA KEV, and FIRST EPSS.
Full tracking and change history for CVE-2021-22986
- Published
- 2021-11-03
- Last revised
- 2021-11-03
- Changes tracked
- 1
Published and last-revised dates are authoritative, from Microsoft MSRC (or the CISA KEV date-added). Senserva additionally records day-to-day changes from 2026-07-07, refreshed several times a day; the change count reflects that forward-only tracking.
- 2021-11-03 added to the CISA KEV catalog by CISA
- 2026-07-17 CVSS 0.0 to 9.8; EPSS first scored at 99.9%
Recorded by Senserva on the dates shown, from CISA KEV and FIRST EPSS. This is what moved and when, which neither the vendor advisory nor NVD publishes.
CISA required action
Federal (BOD 22-01) remediation due date: 2021-11-17 (past due).
Apply updates per vendor instructions.
Official fix for CVE-2021-22986
Check the vendor's security advisory channel for the patched BIG-IP and BIG-IQ Centralized Management versions and workarounds.
Common questions about CVE-2021-22986
Is CVE-2021-22986 actively exploited?
Yes. CVE-2021-22986 was added to the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog on 2021-11-03, which means exploitation in the wild has been confirmed, not predicted. Its EPSS 30-day exploitation probability is 100%. CISA also reports it is known to be used in ransomware campaigns.
What is the CISA deadline and required action for CVE-2021-22986?
CISA set the federal (BOD 22-01) remediation due date at 2021-11-17, which has passed; treat any unremediated system as overdue. The verbatim required action: Apply updates per vendor instructions.
What fixes CVE-2021-22986?
Check the vendor's security advisory for the patched BIG-IP and BIG-IQ Centralized Management versions and any workarounds. KEV listing makes this a fix-first item: patch it ahead of higher-CVSS issues nobody is exploiting.
Can I ask my own AI about CVE-2021-22986?
Yes. This page includes a free, ready-to-paste AI prompt containing CVE-2021-22986's key facts: severity, CVSS, EPSS, the KEV date, the CISA due date, and the required action. Copy it into Claude, ChatGPT, or Copilot; the data is refreshed twice a day (5 AM and 3 PM US Central).
Scope and sources
- More exploited F5 CVEs
All F5 exploited CVEs on one page: F5 vulnerabilities actively exploited.
- Authoritative references
Every actively exploited CVE, searchable with due dates and CSV export: the exploited-CVE tracker. The newest additions: exploited this week.