CVE-2016-10625
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 · uneditedheadless-browser-lite is a minimal npm installer for phantomjs and slimerjs with no external dependencies. headless-browser-lite downloads binary resources over HTTP, which leaves it vulnerable to MITM attacks. It may be possible to cause remote code execution (RCE) by swapping out the requested binary with an attacker controlled binary if the attacker is on the network or positioned in between the user and the remote server.
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 confidenceThe headless-browser-lite npm package downloads PhantomJS and SlimerJS binary executables over unencrypted HTTP connections instead of HTTPS. This allows a network-based attacker positioned between the user and the download server to perform a man-in-the-middle (MITM) attack, intercepting the binary download and replacing it with a malicious executable, potentially leading to remote code execution on the victim's machine.
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 data< 2015.4.18-aCVSS 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
- High
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/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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Check if headless-browser-lite is installedRun 'npm list headless-browser-lite' in the project directory or check package.json dependenciesAffected if The package appears in installed dependencies or package.json
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Determine the installed versionRun 'npm list headless-browser-lite' to see the version number, or check the version in node_modules/headless-browser-lite/package.jsonAffected if The version is less than 2015.4.18-a (e.g., 2015.4.17-a or earlier)
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Inspect package source for HTTP download URLsExamine the main JavaScript file in node_modules/headless-browser-lite/ and search for URLs starting with 'http://' (not 'https://') pointing to phantomjs or slimerjs download locationsAffected if Any download URLs use http:// instead of https://
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Check .npmrc or package configuration for HTTP URLsReview any configuration files in the headless-browser-lite package directory for download URLs and verify they do not use HTTPSAffected if Configured download endpoints use unencrypted HTTP
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Verify binary download behaviorTemporarily monitor network traffic or review package installation logs for outgoing HTTP connections to download servers (e.g., bitbucket.org, sourceforge.net)Affected if The package attempts to download binaries over unencrypted HTTP connections
The environment is affected if headless-browser-lite version < 2015.4.18-a is installed and the package code or configuration contains HTTP download URLs for PhantomJS or SlimerJS binaries.
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 data2015.4.18-a
Replace all HTTP download URLs with HTTPS equivalents and implement cryptographic verification (e.g., SHA-256 checksums or GPG signatures) for downloaded binaries to ensure integrity before execution.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2016-10625 — 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-2016-10625 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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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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