# CVE-2023-28742: BIG-IP iQuery mesh vulnerability

> Authenticated attackers can execute remote commands in DNS iQuery mesh when DNS is provisioned on F5 BIG-IP devices.

- **Severity:** High 7.2 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** An administrator
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 3 May 2023
- **Updated:** 3 Feb 2025
- **Also known as:** GHSA-gqj6-hjr3-p5gm

## What is CVE-2023-28742?

CVE-2023-28742 is a high-severity command injection vulnerability in F5 Big-Ip Domain Name System, published on 3 May 2023. An attacker needs administrator access to exploit it, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

When DNS is provisioned, an authenticated remote command execution vulnerability exists in DNS iQuery mesh.

 

Note: Software versions which have reached End of Technical Support (EoTS) are not evaluated.

Weakness: CWE-78 (Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2023-28742?

It affects 1 product.


Products: F5 Big-Ip Domain Name System.

## How do I fix CVE-2023-28742?

No fix has been published for CVE-2023-28742 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2023-28742 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-28742 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in F5 Big-Ip Domain Name System

- [CVE-2022-23013](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-23013/): Cross-site scripting in BIG-IP DNS & GTM (high 8.8)
- [CVE-2026-40061](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-40061/): iControl REST and tmsh vulnerability (high 8.5)
- [CVE-2022-41787](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-41787/): BIG-IP DNS Express vulnerability CVE-2022-41787 (high 7.5)
- [CVE-2021-23032](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-23032/): Denial of service in BIG-IP DNS (high 7.5)
- [CVE-2020-27717](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-27717/): Denial of service in BIG-IP DNS (high 7.5)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2023-28742 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2023-28742 is a high-severity command injection vulnerability in F5 Big-Ip Domain Name System, published on 3 May 2023. An attacker needs administrator access to exploit it, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-28742 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: F5 Big-Ip Domain Name System. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-28742/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-28742/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2023-28742
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-28742
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2023-28742

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-28742/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.