Ubuntu LinuxOperating system · Canonical

CVE-2016-1683

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v3.0 Published 2016-06-05

Fix available

A fix is available. Upgrade to after 50.0.2661.102 or later.

See remediation →

82/100

Remediation priority · High

Remotely reachable No privileges

Official description

NVD · unedited

numbers.c in libxslt before 1.1.29, as used in Google Chrome before 51.0.2704.63, mishandles namespace nodes, which allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (out-of-bounds heap memory access) or possibly have unspecified other impact via a crafted document.

Technical summary

dbcve analysis · high confidence

Heap-based out-of-bounds memory access vulnerability in libxslt's numbers.c where namespace node handling is flawed, allowing remote attackers to cause denial of service or potentially achieve arbitrary code execution via specially crafted XML documents.

MitigationUpgrade libxslt to version 1.1.29 or later, or update Google Chrome to 51.0.2704.63 or later; test thoroughly as this library is commonly linked by other applications.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions

NVD · CPE data

Ubuntu LinuxOperating system

Affected:= 14.04= 15.10= 16.04

Debian LinuxOperating system

Affected:= 8.0

Enterprise Linux DesktopOperating system

Affected:= 6.0

Enterprise Linux ServerOperating system

Affected:= 6.0

Enterprise Linux WorkstationOperating system

Affected:= 6.0

ChromeWeb browser

Affected:<= 50.0.2661.102

LibxsltApplication

Affected:<= 1.1.28

LeapOperating system

Affected:= 42.1

CVSS breakdown

From the vector

Attack vector: Network
Complexity: High
Privileges: None
User interaction: Required
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: High
Integrity: High
Availability: High

CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Am I affected?

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

Check installed libxslt version

Run 'xsltproc --version' or check the package version via 'dpkg -l libxslt1.1' (Debian/Ubuntu), 'rpm -q libxslt' (RHEL), or 'rpm -q libxslt1' (OpenSUSE)

Affected if The version displayed is 1.1.28 or lower
Check Google Chrome version

Open Chrome, go to Settings > About Chrome, or run 'google-chrome --version' in terminal

Affected if The version is 50.0.2661.102 or lower
Identify applications using libxslt

Run 'ldd /path/to/application | grep libxslt' for suspect apps, or check common binaries like 'xsltproc', 'sablotron', or custom applications that process untrusted XML

Affected if The linked libxslt library version is 1.1.28 or lower
Confirm OS distribution and version

Run 'cat /etc/os-release' (Ubuntu/Debian/OpenSUSE) or 'cat /etc/redhat-release' (RHEL)

Affected if The system is Ubuntu 14.04, 15.10, or 16.04; Debian 8.0; RHEL 6.0; or OpenSUSE Leap 42.1, and libxslt version is at or below 1.1.28

You are affected if your system runs libxslt version 1.1.28 or lower, or Google Chrome 50.0.2661.102 or lower, especially on the listed Ubuntu, Debian, RHEL, or OpenSUSE versions.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Remediation

From vendor data

Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 50.0.2661.102

Interim mitigation

Upgrade libxslt to version 1.1.29 or later, or update Google Chrome to 51.0.2704.63 or later; test thoroughly as this library is commonly linked by other applications.

Fix this in Ubuntu Linux Scoped from the published advisory

Consultation4.0 h
Implementation8.0 h
Testing8.0 h
Review / QA4.0 h

24.0 hours of engineering $4,160

Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $6,656.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally

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References

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2016-1683 in production — separate from our analysis above.

Notes0 Guidelines

Know something about CVE-2016-1683?

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

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

What this is

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.

What belongs here

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

At a glance

A fix existsUpgrade to after 50.0.2661.102 or later

Severity 7.5 High

Exploit likelihood EPSS, next 30 days 2.1%

Affects: Ubuntu Linux

Remediation

A high-priority fix

Fix this in Ubuntu Linux 24 hrs · Moderate

Typical engagement from $4,160

Get a fix See the full breakdown ↓

A high-priority vulnerability. Send your environment and a specialist will scope CVE-2016-1683 and return a fixed quote and timeline.

You’ll deal with our team directly and deploy the reviewed fix to staging first — never straight to production.

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.

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.

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.

CVSS 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.

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.

Check your environment

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.

Scan for this in your stack

References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Practitioner notes

No notes yet

Official description

Technical summary

Affected products & versions

CVSS breakdown

Am I affected?

Remediation

References