Differentiating between the BIG-IP data plane and control plane

The newest F5 security advisory articles state whether specified vulnerabilities impact the control plane, the data plane, or both. 

Data-plane processing is related to the basic process of getting data, whether it be input from a system or requests from users, and returning data (output, files, or responses). The control plane deals with management-related tasks to process management traffic in response to context and policy. 

For examples and more, refer to K44525501: Overview of the BIG-IP data plane and control plane.