CVE-2016-0142
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedVideo Control in Microsoft Windows Vista SP2, Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8.1, Windows RT 8.1, and Windows 10 Gold, 1511, and 1607 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted web page, aka "Microsoft Video Control Remote Code Execution Vulnerability."
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidenceA remote code execution vulnerability exists in the Microsoft Video Control component across multiple Windows versions (Vista SP2 through Windows 10 1607). Attackers can exploit this by tricking users into visiting crafted web pages, potentially allowing arbitrary code execution with user privileges.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE dataall versions= 1511= 1607all versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsCVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify your Windows versionRun 'winver' or check System Properties to determine your exact Windows version and build numberAffected if Your version is Windows Vista (any version), Windows 7 (any version), Windows 8.1 (any version), Windows RT 8.1 (any version), or Windows 10 versions 1511 or 1607
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Verify the Video Control component is presentCheck for the presence of the Windows Media Player Video Control (mfmp4src.dll or related Media Foundation components) on your systemAffected if The Video Control component is installed on your system - this is a default component in affected Windows versions
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Confirm the security update is not installedCheck the installed updates for security update KB3148523 (the patch for CVE-2016-0142) in Windows Update or via 'wmic qfe list'Affected if The security update KB3148523 is NOT installed on your system
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Determine browser and web exposureReview whether users have access to untrusted websites or Internet Explorer/Edge browsers that could trigger the Video Control exploitation vectorAffected if Users can browse to arbitrary websites and the Video Control component is accessible to web-based content
You are affected if you are running any affected Windows version listed above AND the security update KB3148523 is not installed AND users can access untrusted web content that could trigger the Video Control component.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataApply Microsoft security updates for CVE-2016-0142. Until patched, restrict user access to untrusted websites and consider disabling the Video Control component or using application whitelisting as a compensating control.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,848.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2016-0142 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2016-0142 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.
- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data