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WiresharkApplication

CVE-2016-2523

MEDIUM · 5.9 CVSS v3.0 Published 2016-02-28
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
68/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

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 · unedited
The dnp3_al_process_object function in epan/dissectors/packet-dnp.c in the DNP3 dissector in Wireshark 1.12.x before 1.12.10 and 2.0.x before 2.0.2 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (infinite loop) via a crafted packet.

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 confidence

The DNP3 dissector in Wireshark versions 1.12.x before 1.12.10 and 2.0.x before 2.0.2 contains an infinite loop vulnerability in the dnp3_al_process_object function. When Wireshark parses a specially crafted DNP3 packet, the dissector enters an infinite loop, causing a denial of service condition.

MitigationUpdate Wireshark to version 1.12.10 or later, or 2.0.2 or later. Alternatively, avoid opening untrusted DNP3 capture files or processing untrusted DNP3 traffic with vulnerable Wireshark instances.

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
WiresharkApplication
Affected:= 1.12.0= 1.12.1= 1.12.2= 1.12.3= 1.12.4= 1.12.5= 1.12.6= 1.12.7= 1.12.8= 1.12.9= 2.0.0= 2.0.1

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.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
High
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
None
Availability
High

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

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

  1. Identify installed Wireshark version
    Run 'wireshark --version' or check the About dialog in the Wireshark GUI to see the exact version number
    Affected if The version is 1.12.0 through 1.12.9, or 2.0.0 or 2.0.1 (versions before 1.12.10 or 2.0.2)
  2. Confirm DNP3 protocol support is present
    Check if the DNP3 dissector is available in your Wireshark installation by looking in Analyze > Enabled Protocols or running 'tshark -G dissectors' and searching for 'dnp3'
    Affected if The DNP3 dissector is listed as enabled or available in the Wireshark build
  3. Determine if DNP3 traffic capture or analysis is performed
    Review your capture files or live capture sessions to see if any capture files contain DNP3 protocol traffic, or if you regularly analyze DNP3-based network traffic
    Affected if You open or analyze DNP3 capture files or process DNP3 traffic on the network

You are affected if your Wireshark version is 1.12.0-1.12.9 or 2.0.0-2.0.1 AND you use the DNP3 dissector to analyze DNP3 traffic or open DNP3 capture files.

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

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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 data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Update Wireshark to version 1.12.10 or later, or 2.0.2 or later. Alternatively, avoid opening untrusted DNP3 capture files or processing untrusted DNP3 traffic with vulnerable Wireshark instances.

Fix this in Wireshark Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Implementation1.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
4.0 hours of engineering $750
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2016-2523 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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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