LinuxOperating system · Oracle

CVE-2016-2801

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.0 Published 2016-03-13

Fix available

A fix is available. Upgrade to after 44.0.2 or later.

See remediation →

95/100

Remediation priority · Urgent

Remotely reachable No privileges

Official description

NVD · unedited

The graphite2::TtfUtil::CmapSubtable12Lookup function in TtfUtil.cpp in Graphite 2 before 1.3.6, as used in Mozilla Firefox before 45.0 and Firefox ESR 38.x before 38.7, allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (buffer over-read) or possibly have unspecified other impact via a crafted Graphite smart font, a different vulnerability than CVE-2016-2797.

Technical summary

dbcve analysis · high confidence

Buffer over-read vulnerability in graphite2::TtfUtil::CmapSubtable12Lookup function in TtfUtil.cpp in Graphite 2 before 1.3.6, allowing remote attackers to cause denial of service or possibly other impact via crafted Graphite smart font loaded in Mozilla Firefox before 45.0 or Firefox ESR 38.x before 38.7.

MitigationUpdate Graphite 2 library to version 1.3.6 or later, or upgrade Firefox to version 45.0+ (or ESR 38.7+) which includes the patched library version.

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

LinuxOperating system

Affected:= 5.0= 6= 7

FirefoxWeb browser

Affected:<= 44.0.2= 38.0= 38.0.1= 38.0.5= 38.1.0= 38.1.1= 38.2.0= 38.2.1= 38.3.0= 38.4.0= 38.5.0= 38.5.1

LeapOperating system

Affected:= 42.1

OpensuseOperating system

Affected:= 13.1= 13.2

Linux EnterpriseOperating system

Affected:= 12.0

Graphite2Application

Affected:<= 1.3.5

CVSS breakdown

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?

dbcve checks

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

Check Graphite2 library version on Linux systems

Run 'rpm -qa | grep graphite2' or 'dpkg -l | grep graphite2' to list installed graphite2 packages, then check the version number

Affected if Graphite2 library version is 1.3.5 or earlier (versions <= 1.3.5 are vulnerable)
Check Firefox version on Linux systems

Run 'firefox --version' or check the package manager for firefox version (rpm -q firefox or dpkg -l firefox)

Affected if Firefox version is 44.0.2 or earlier, or Firefox ESR version 38.0 through 38.6.x (38.6, 38.5.1, 38.5.0, etc.)
Check installed Firefox on Windows or Mac

Open Firefox, click Help > About Firefox to display the version number

Affected if Firefox shows version 44.0.2 or earlier, or ESR 38.6.x or earlier (versions before 38.7)
Verify if Graphite smart fonts are in use

Check for presence of .grc or .grd Graphite smart font files in user directories or system font folders (common locations: ~/.fonts, /usr/share/fonts, orfonts folder in application data)

Affected if Graphite smart fonts (.grc/.grd files) are loaded by a vulnerable Firefox or Graphite2 library version - the exploit triggers when these crafted fonts are processed

You are affected if your installed Graphite2 library is version 1.3.5 or earlier, OR if your Firefox is version 44.0.2 or earlier (or ESR 38.6.x or earlier), and you load or could load untrusted Graphite smart fonts.

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

Remediation

From vendor data

Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 44.0.2

Interim mitigation

Update Graphite 2 library to version 1.3.6 or later, or upgrade Firefox to version 45.0+ (or ESR 38.7+) which includes the patched library version.

Fix this in Linux Scoped from the published advisory

Consultation4.0 h
Implementation4.0 h
Testing8.0 h
Review / QA4.0 h

20.0 hours of engineering $3,440

Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $5,504.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally

dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2016-2801 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

References

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2016-2801 in production — separate from our analysis above.

Notes0 Guidelines

Know something about CVE-2016-2801?

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 44.0.2 or later

Severity 8.8 High

Exploit likelihood EPSS, next 30 days 2.3%

Affects: Linux

Remediation

A high-priority fix

Fix this in Linux 20 hrs · Moderate

Typical engagement from $3,440

Get a fix See the full breakdown ↓

A high-priority vulnerability. Send your environment and a specialist will scope CVE-2016-2801 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