FirefoxWeb browser · Mozilla

CVE-2016-2802

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::CmapSubtable4NextCodepoint function 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.

Technical summary

dbcve analysis · high confidence

Buffer over-read vulnerability in the graphite2::TtfUtil::CmapSubtable4NextCodepoint function in Graphite 2 library versions before 1.3.6. The flaw is triggered when processing a crafted Graphite smart font, causing the function to read beyond buffer boundaries. This affects Mozilla Firefox before 45.0 and Firefox ESR before 38.7, leading to potential denial of service or unspecified code execution.

MitigationUpgrade Graphite 2 library to version 1.3.6 or later; alternatively, update Firefox to 45.0+ or Firefox ESR 38.7+ to incorporate the fixed library. Exercise caution with untrusted Graphite font sources until patches are applied.

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

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

LinuxOperating system

Affected:= 5.0= 6= 7

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

Run 'rpm -qa | grep graphite2' (RHEL/CentOS) or 'dpkg -l | grep graphite2' (Debian/Ubuntu) to list installed graphite2 packages, then check the version number

Affected if The installed version is 1.3.5 or earlier, or the package is not found but the library file libgraphite2.so exists with version < 1.3.6
Check Firefox browser version

Open Firefox and navigate to 'about:config' or run 'firefox --version' from command line to determine the exact Firefox version

Affected if Firefox version is 44.0.2 or earlier, or falls within the 38.x.x ESR range before 38.7
Check for embedded graphite2 in Firefox

Locate the Firefox binary and its bundled libraries - on Linux this is typically in /usr/lib/firefox or /opt/firefox, then identify the libgraphite2.so library version bundled with Firefox

Affected if The bundled libgraphite2 library version inside Firefox is 1.3.5 or earlier
Verify if Graphite fonts are being processed

Check for presence of Graphite smart fonts (.ttf files with Graphite tables) in user-accessible font directories such as ~/.fonts, /usr/share/fonts, or fonts loaded from web content

Affected if Graphite-enabled fonts are installed or could be loaded from untrusted sources, enabling the vulnerable code path in CmapSubtable4NextCodepoint

You are affected if your system has Graphite2 library version <= 1.3.5, or Firefox version < 45.0 (or ESR < 38.7), and you process Graphite smart fonts from any source.

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

Upgrade Graphite 2 library to version 1.3.6 or later; alternatively, update Firefox to 45.0+ or Firefox ESR 38.7+ to incorporate the fixed library. Exercise caution with untrusted Graphite font sources until patches are applied.

Fix this in Firefox Scoped from the published advisory

Consultation2.0 h
Implementation3.0 h
Testing2.0 h
Review / QA1.0 h

8.0 hours of engineering $1,420

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Scan for this in your stack

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References

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2016-2802 in production — separate from our analysis above.

Notes0 Guidelines

Know something about CVE-2016-2802?

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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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: Firefox

Remediation

A high-priority fix

Fix this in Firefox 8 hrs · Moderate

Typical engagement from $1,420

Get a fix See the full breakdown ↓

A high-priority vulnerability. Send your environment and a specialist will scope CVE-2016-2802 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