CVE-2016-7967
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 · uneditedKMail since version 5.3.0 used a QWebEngine based viewer that had JavaScript enabled. Since the generated html is executed in the local file security context by default access to remote and local URLs was enabled.
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 confidenceKMail versions 5.3.0 and later use a QWebEngine-based HTML viewer with JavaScript enabled. Because the rendered HTML executes within the local file security context rather than a sandboxed web context, the viewer can make requests to both remote URLs and access local file resources, enabling information disclosure or other attacks.
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<= 5.3.0CVSS 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
- None
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N
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 installed KMail versionRun kmail --version or check your package manager for the installed kde-kmail or kdepim versionAffected if The version is 5.3.0 or earlier (or if your package shows a version number less than or equal to 5.3.0)
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Verify QWebEngine viewer is in useIn KMail, go to Settings > Configure KMail > Reader > HTML viewer, or check if the HTML part component is using the WebEngine backend (this became the default in 5.3.0)Affected if The QWebEngine-based HTML viewer is enabled and in use
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Inspect JavaScript setting in HTML viewerIn KMail settings under the HTML viewer configuration, check whether JavaScript is permitted to run in rendered HTML emailsAffected if JavaScript execution is enabled or allowed in the HTML viewer settings
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Check for external network access from viewerAttempt to send a test HTML email with a reference to a remote image or script from an external server, and verify whether the viewer attempts to fetch itAffected if The viewer loads remote content from URLs in HTML emails (indicating the local file security context allows network requests)
You are affected if your KMail version is 5.3.0 or later with the QWebEngine HTML viewer enabled and JavaScript execution turned on in the viewer settings.
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 dataDisable JavaScript execution in the QWebEngine viewer component or upgrade to a version where JavaScript is disabled by default in the HTML viewer.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation3.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2016-7967 — 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-2016-7967 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