WiresharkApplication
CVE-2016-2528
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 dissect_nhdr_extopt function in epan/dissectors/packet-lbmc.c in the LBMC dissector in Wireshark 2.0.x before 2.0.2 does not validate length values, which allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (stack-based buffer overflow and application crash) 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 confidenceThe LBMC dissector in Wireshark contains a stack-based buffer overflow vulnerability in the dissect_nhdr_extopt function within packet-lbmc.c. The function fails to validate length values from crafted packets before using them in buffer operations, allowing remote attackers to overflow a stack buffer and crash the application via specially crafted network packets or capture files.
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
= 2.0.0= 2.0.1CVSS 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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify Wireshark installationRun 'wireshark --version' or 'tshark --version' to determine if Wireshark is installed and retrieve the version numberAffected if Version is 2.0.0 or 2.0.1
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Confirm exact version numberCompare the installed version against the affected range: 2.0.0 and 2.0.1 onlyAffected if Installed version is exactly 2.0.0 or 2.0.1
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Verify LBMC dissector presenceCheck if the LBMC dissector module exists by searching for 'packet-lbmc.c' in the Wireshark installation directory or running 'wireshark -G dissectors' | grep -i lbmcAffected if LBMC dissector is present in the installation
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Check for packet capture processingReview any automated or user-initiated processes that open pcap/pcapng files using Wireshark or tshark, particularly from untrusted sourcesAffected if Untrusted capture files are being processed with the affected Wireshark version
A user is affected if Wireshark version 2.0.0 or 2.0.1 is installed and the LBMC dissector is available for processing network packets or capture files.
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 dataUpgrade Wireshark to version 2.0.2 or later. Until then, avoid opening untrusted packet capture files or processing suspicious network traffic with the LBMC dissector.
Fix this in Wireshark
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing4.0 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 $3,328.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2016-2528 — 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-2016-2528 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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- 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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