VulnerabilityPublished 4 Feb 2026

CVE-2026-22549: F5 BIG-IP Container Ingress Services · Execution with Unnecessary Privileges

Affects F5 BIG-IP Container Ingress ServicesSource CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 4.9 Medium.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 10:12 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

4.9Medium

How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.

EPSS: 0.3% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 29% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N

Attack Vector: Network
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: High
User Interaction: None
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: High
Integrity: None
Availability: None

Bold values are the worst case: easiest to exploit or largest impact.

Attack Vector: Network: The vulnerable component is bound to the network stack and the set of possible attackers extends beyond the other options listed, up to and including the entire Internet. Such a vulnerability is often termed 'remotely exploitable' and can be thought of as an attack being exploitable at the protocol level one or more network hops away (e.g., across one or more routers).
Attack Complexity: Low: Specialized access conditions or extenuating circumstances do not exist. An attacker can expect repeatable success against the vulnerable component.
Privileges Required: High: The attacker is authorized with (i.e., requires) privileges that provide significant (e.g., administrative) control over the vulnerable component that could affect component-wide settings and files.
User Interaction: None: The vulnerable system can be exploited without any interaction from any user.
Scope: Unchanged: An exploited vulnerability can only affect resources managed by the same security authority. In this case, the vulnerable component and the impacted component are either the same, or both are managed by the same security authority.
Confidentiality: High: There is total loss of confidentiality, resulting in all resources within the impacted component being divulged to the attacker. Alternatively, access to only some restricted information is obtained, but the disclosed information presents a direct, serious impact.
Integrity: None: There is no loss of integrity within the impacted component.
Availability: None: There is no impact to availability within the impacted component.

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v3.1 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 4 Feb 2026
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponised: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 26 Oct 2026.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponised: Public exploit code exists in Metasploit or Exploit-DB, or CISA SSVC or the CVSS exploit maturity reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
F5F5 BIG-IP Container Ingress Services	Affected >=1.0.0 =2.0.0	Fixed in–

AI-suggested

Limit privileges: Ensure that F5 BIG-IP Container Ingress Services run with the minimum necessary privileges, adhering to the principle of least privilege to reduce the risk of excessive permission exploitation.
Secrets management: Implement strict access controls and auditing on cluster secrets, using Kubernetes RBAC policies and secrets encryption to limit exposure.
Network segmentation: Isolate container ingress services within secure network zones to restrict access to trusted entities only.
Monitoring and alerting: Deploy continuous monitoring solutions to detect unusual access patterns or privilege escalations related to ingress services and secrets access.
Vendor updates: Monitor F5 advisories closely and apply patches or updates promptly once they become available to remediate the vulnerability.
Incident response readiness: Prepare and test incident response plans specific to container orchestration environments to quickly address potential exploitation.
Configuration review: Regularly audit the configuration of F5 BIG-IP Container Ingress Services and Kubernetes clusters to identify and remediate misconfigurations that could exacerbate the vulnerability.
Use of alternative ingress controllers: Where feasible, consider alternative ingress solutions with a smaller attack surface or better privilege management until patches are available.

Description

A vulnerability exists in F5 BIG-IP Container Ingress Services that may allow excessive permissions to read cluster secrets. Note: Software versions which have reached End of Technical Support (EoTS) are not evaluated.

Impact

For European organizations, the primary impact of CVE-2026-22549 is the potential exposure of sensitive cluster secrets within container orchestration environments. This can lead to unauthorized access to critical infrastructure components, enabling attackers to move laterally, escalate privileges, or exfiltrate sensitive data. Given the widespread adoption of containerized applications and Kubernetes in Europe, especially in sectors such as finance, telecommunications, and government, this vulnerability poses a significant risk to confidentiality. The absence of integrity or availability impacts limits the scope to data confidentiality breaches, but the sensitivity of secrets involved can have cascading effects on overall security posture. Organizations relying on F5 BIG-IP Container Ingress Services for ingress management in containerized environments may face increased risk if attackers gain elevated privileges or if insider threats exploit this vulnerability. The lack of known exploits reduces immediate risk but does not eliminate the threat, especially as attackers may develop exploits over time. Failure to address this vulnerability could result in regulatory non-compliance, particularly under GDPR, if sensitive data is compromised. Therefore, European organizations must prioritize detection, containment, and remediation efforts to mitigate potential impacts.

CWE-250Execution with Unnecessary Privileges (opens in a new tab)
Base weaknessLikelihood of exploit: Medium
The product performs an operation at a privilege level that is higher than the minimum level required, which creates new weaknesses or amplifies the consequences of other weaknesses.
Architecture and Design · Operation · Environment Hardening
Run your code using the lowest privileges that are required to accomplish the necessary tasks. If possible, create isolated accounts with limited privileges that are only used for a single task. That way, a successful attack will not immediately give the attacker access to the rest of the software or its environment.
Architecture and Design · Separation of Privilege
Identify the functionality that requires additional privileges, such as access to privileged operating system resources. Wrap and centralize this functionality if possible, and isolate the privileged code as much as possible from other code.
Architecture and Design · Attack Surface Reduction
Identify the functionality that requires additional privileges, such as access to privileged operating system resources. Wrap and centralize this functionality if possible, and isolate the privileged code as much as possible from other code.
OWASP Cheat Sheets
Docker Security (opens in a new tab)
Vulnerable Dependency Management (opens in a new tab)
OWASP ASVS 4.0.3
V1.14.5 (opens in a new tab)
V1.2.1 (opens in a new tab)
V14.2.6 (opens in a new tab)
Attack patterns
Cross Zone Scripting (opens in a new tab)
Expanding Control over the Operating System from the Database (opens in a new tab)
Target Programs with Elevated Privileges (opens in a new tab)
From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

References

my.f5.com/manage/s/article/K000157960 (opens in a new tab)

Community reviews

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 4 Feb 2026, 15:44 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-250

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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