CVE-2016-3259
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 Microsoft (1) JScript 9, (2) VBScript, and (3) Chakra JavaScript engines, as used in Microsoft Internet Explorer 9 through 11, Microsoft Edge, and other products, allow remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (memory corruption) via a crafted web site, aka "Scripting Engine Memory Corruption Vulnerability," a different vulnerability than CVE-2016-3248.
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 confidenceMemory corruption vulnerability in Microsoft scripting engines (JScript 9, VBScript, Chakra JavaScript) used in Internet Explorer 9-11 and Microsoft Edge allows remote attackers to achieve arbitrary code execution via crafted malicious web pages.
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 dataall versions= 9= 10= 11CVSS 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
- 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? 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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Check Internet Explorer versionOpen Internet Explorer, click Help > About Internet Explorer, or type 'winver' in Run dialog to see Windows version which includes IE version info. Alternatively, check the registry key HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer for the Version value.Affected if The version displayed is 9.x, 10.x, or 11.x (matches affected versions 9, 10, or 11)
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Check Microsoft Edge versionOpen Microsoft Edge, click Settings > About Edge, or check the registry key HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Update\EdgeUpdate for the version value.Affected if Any version of Microsoft Edge is installed (all versions are affected)
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Verify JScript or VBScript scripting is enabled in Internet ExplorerOpen Internet Options > Security tab > select each zone (Internet, Intranet, Trusted Sites, Restricted Sites) > click Custom Level > under 'Active scripting' verify if Enabled. Also check for 'Script ActiveX controls marked safe for scripting' in the same location.Affected if Active scripting is enabled in any security zone, allowing the vulnerability to be triggered via malicious web pages
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Check for installed Windows security updatesOpen Control Panel > Programs and Features > View installed updates, or run 'wmic qfe list' command, and look for security updates from MS16-084 or subsequent relevant bulletins.Affected if No Microsoft security updates from MS16-084 or later are installed, meaning the vulnerability remains unpatched
A system is affected if it runs Internet Explorer 9, 10, or 11 or any version of Microsoft Edge, has scripting enabled in IE, and lacks the MS16-084 or later security updates.
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 dataApply Microsoft security updates (MS16-084 or subsequent relevant bulletins) to all affected Windows systems; consider disabling VBScript execution in Internet Explorer as an interim control.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing3.0 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 $3,984.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2016-3259 — 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-2016-3259 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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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.
- 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