Chrome OsOperating system · Google
CVE-2016-5179
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 · uneditedChrome OS before 53.0.2785.144 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary commands at boot.
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 · moderate confidenceChrome OS versions prior to 53.0.2785.144 contain a vulnerability that allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary commands during the boot process. This pre-authentication flaw with CVSS 9.8 severity enables full command execution without requiring user credentials, likely through exploitation of a service or daemon running at boot time.
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
Chrome OsOperating system
< 53.0.2785.144CVSS 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
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/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 Chrome OS version via chrome://versionOpen a Chrome browser on the Chrome OS device and navigate to chrome://version. Locate the 'Chrome OS version' field in the displayed information.Affected if The displayed version number is less than 53.0.2785.144
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Check Chrome OS version via system settingsOn the Chrome OS login screen or desktop, click on the system clock in the bottom-right corner, then click the gear icon or 'Settings.' Navigate to 'About Chrome OS' or 'Chrome OS device' to view the version.Affected if The reported version is below 53.0.2785.144
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Verify via command lineOpen a terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T), type 'shell', then run 'cat /etc/lsb-release' or 'version' command to display the Chrome OS version details.Affected if The version string shows a build number lower than 53.0.2785.144
If the installed Chrome OS version is below 53.0.2785.144, the environment is vulnerable to remote command execution during boot.
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.
dbcve · scoped53.0.2785.144
Update Chrome OS to version 53.0.2785.144 or later to remediate this vulnerability. Organizations should prioritize patching due to the critical severity and remote attack vector.
Chrome OS 53.0.2785.144 or later
- Ensure your Chrome OS device is connected to the internet
- Go to Settings > About Chrome OS > Check for updates
- Allow the system to download and install Chrome OS version 53.0.2785.144 or later
- Restart the device to complete the update process
- Verify the installed version by checking Settings > About Chrome OS
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
Fix this in Chrome Os
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 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 $5,120.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2016-5179 — 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-2016-5179 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