CVE-2016-5803
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 · uneditedAn issue was discovered in CA Unified Infrastructure Management Version 8.47 and earlier. The Unified Infrastructure Management software uses external input to construct a pathname that should be within a restricted directory, but it does not properly neutralize sequences such as ".." that can resolve to a location that is outside of that directory.
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 confidenceA path traversal vulnerability in CA Unified Infrastructure Management versions 8.47 and earlier allows attackers to access files outside restricted directories by manipulating path references with '..' sequences in user-supplied input used to construct file paths.
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<= 8.47CVSS 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
- Low
- Availability
- Low
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:L/A:L
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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Identify CA UIM installation and versionLocate the CA Unified Infrastructure Management installation directory and check the version file, installer logs, or application about dialog to determine the installed versionAffected if Version is 8.47 or earlier (any version <= 8.47)
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Confirm web interface or API exposureIdentify whether the CA UIM web portal or REST API endpoints that handle file operations are accessible from the networkAffected if The application web interface accepting file path input is network-accessible
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Identify file operation endpoints accepting user inputReview application configuration files and documentation to locate endpoints that accept user-supplied paths for file access operationsAffected if Endpoints that use user input in file path construction are publicly accessible
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Examine logs for path traversal indicatorsSearch web server and application logs for '..' sequences or path traversal patterns in file-related request parametersAffected if Historical or current log entries show path traversal attempts with '..' sequences
The environment is affected if CA Unified Infrastructure Management version 8.47 or earlier is running with accessible file operation endpoints that use user-supplied input in path construction.
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 dataImplement strict input validation to reject or neutralize '..' sequences and other path traversal attempts before using external input in file path operations. Restrict file system access permissions to minimize blast radius.
- Consultation6.0 h
- Implementation12.0 h
- Testing8.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $8,448.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2016-5803 — 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-2016-5803 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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- 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
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