CVE-2016-0195
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 · uneditedThe Imaging Component in Microsoft Windows Vista SP2, Windows Server 2008 SP2 and R2 SP1, Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2012 Gold and R2, Windows RT 8.1, and Windows 10 Gold and 1511 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted document, aka "Windows Imaging Component Memory Corruption 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 confidenceMemory corruption vulnerability in the Windows Imaging Component allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted document (likely a malicious image file). The vulnerability affects multiple Windows versions from Vista through Windows 10 1511.
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= 1511all versionsall versionsall versionsall versions= r2all versions= r2all 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
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/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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Confirm Windows version is in affected rangeRun 'winver' or 'systeminfo | findstr /B /C:"OS Name" /C:"OS Version"' to identify the installed Windows version. Check if it matches Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8.1, Windows RT 8.1, Windows 10 (all versions including 1511), Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Server 2012 R2, or Windows Server 2012.Affected if The system runs any of the listed affected versions (Vista, 7, 8.1, RT 8.1, 10, Server 2008 R2, Server 2012, Server 2012 R2).
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Verify Windows Imaging Component is presentConfirm the WIC (Windows Imaging Component) DLLs exist on the system. Check for the presence of 'windowscodecs.dll' in System32 (path: C:\Windows\System32\windowscodecs.dll) or query the component via 'reg query "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows Imaging Component" /v Version'.Affected if The Windows Imaging Component is installed (this is a default component on affected Windows versions).
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Confirm security update MS16-077 is installedOpen Control Panel > Programs and Features > View installed updates, or run 'wmic qfe list' or 'Get-HotFix -ComputerName localhost' in PowerShell. Search for any of the KB updates released in June 2016 that address this vulnerability (such as KB3164033, KB3164035, KB3164036, or related KBs from MS16-077).Affected if The specific June 2016 security updates for this CVE are NOT installed; the system remains vulnerable.
A system is affected if it runs any affected Windows version listed AND lacks the June 2016 security updates (MS16-077) that patch this Windows Imaging Component vulnerability.
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's June 2016 security updates for this vulnerability (MS16-077 or related bulletins). Additionally, enforce least-privilege user habits and block opening of untrusted documents from unknown sources.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing3.0 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 $3,984.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2016-0195 — 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-2016-0195 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
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