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Actively exploited in the wild. This CVE is on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities list — treat remediation as urgent. Federal remediation due by 15 Jun 2022.
Windows 10 1507Operating system · Microsoft

CVE-2016-3393

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2016-10-14
Patch available
A vendor patch is available. No clean upgrade release — apply the published patch.
See remediation →
97/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
In the wild High EPSS No privileges Patch available

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
Graphics Device Interface (aka GDI or GDI+) in Microsoft Windows Vista SP2; Windows Server 2008 SP2 and R2 SP1; Windows 7 SP1; Windows 8.1; Windows Server 2012 Gold and R2; Windows RT 8.1; and Windows 10 Gold, 1511, and 1607 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted web site, aka "Windows Graphics Component RCE Vulnerability."

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

A remote code execution vulnerability exists in the Graphics Device Interface (GDI+) component of Microsoft Windows. Attackers can exploit this by enticing users to visit crafted websites containing specially designed graphic content, allowing arbitrary code execution with the user's privileges.

MitigationApply the Microsoft security update (MS16-122) or subsequent cumulative updates that address this vulnerability. Users should avoid untrusted websites and maintain current Windows system patches.

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
Windows 10 1507Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows 10 1511Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows 10 1607Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows 7Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows 8.1Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows Rt 8.1Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows Server 2008Operating system
Affected:all versions= r2
Windows Server 2012Operating system
Affected:all versions= r2

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
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/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 checks

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

  1. Identify Windows version
    Run 'winver' or 'systeminfo | findstr /B /C:"OS Name" /C:"OS Version"' to determine the installed Windows edition and version
    Affected if The version matches Windows 10 1507, 1511, or 1607; Windows 7; Windows 8.1; Windows Rt 8.1; Windows Server 2008; Windows Server 2008 R2; Windows Server 2012; or Windows Server 2012 R2
  2. Check if security update MS16-114 is installed
    Run 'wmic qfe list' or 'Get-HotFix -Id KB3188739' to query installed hotfixes
    Affected if The security update KB3188739 (MS16-114) is NOT listed among installed hotfixes
  3. Verify GDI+ component file version
    Check the version of gdi32.dll in C:\Windows\System32\ using 'dir gdi32.dll' or PowerShell '(Get-Item C:\Windows\System32\gdi32.dll).VersionInfo.FileVersion'
    Affected if The file version is lower than the patched version for your Windows build and the MS16-114 update is not installed

A system is affected if it runs any of the listed Windows versions AND lacks the MS16-114 security update KB3188739.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Patch available Apply the vendor patch
Vendor patch docs.microsoft.com →
Interim mitigation

Apply the Microsoft security update (MS16-122) or subsequent cumulative updates that address this vulnerability. Users should avoid untrusted websites and maintain current Windows system patches.

Recommended fix High confidence

Apply Microsoft security update MS16-120 (October 2016) or migrate to a later supported Windows version with current security support

  1. Obtain the security update for CVE-2016-3393 from Microsoft Update Catalog or Windows Update
  2. For Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 SP2, and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1: Apply the October 2016 security update (MS16-120)
  3. For Windows 8.1, Windows RT 8.1, Windows Server 2012, and Windows Server 2012 R2: Apply the October 2016 security update (MS16-120)
  4. For Windows 10 versions 1507, 1511, and 1607: Apply the October 2016 cumulative security update
  5. Verify the update was successfully installed by checking Windows Update history
  6. Restart the system if prompted to complete the installation
Caveat Applying security updates carries minimal risk; however, ensure critical systems are backed up before applying patches in production environments

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Windows 10 1507 Exploited in the wild — priority engagement
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
14.0 hours of engineering $2,440
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An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,904.

Scan for this in your stack

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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-2016-3393 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