CVE-2016-7968
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. HTML Mail contents were not sanitized for JavaScript and included code was executed.
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 used a QWebEngine-based HTML email viewer with JavaScript enabled. The application failed to sanitize HTML email content before rendering, allowing embedded JavaScript to execute within the email viewer context (stored XSS). This could enable attackers to execute arbitrary JavaScript in the context of the victim's KMail session by sending specially crafted HTML emails.
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
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- Low
- Integrity
- Low
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/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 'apt list --installed 2>/dev/null | grep -i kmail' or look in KDE System Settings > Application InfoAffected if Version is 5.3.0 or lower (the version number equals or is less than the affected range)
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Verify HTML email rendering is enabledOpen KMail, go to Settings > Configure KMail > Reading > Messages, or inspect the configuration file ~/.config/kmail2rc for 'HTML Reader' or 'useHTML' settingsAffected if HTML rendering is turned ON (the vulnerability only applies when HTML emails are rendered)
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Confirm QWebEngine viewer is in useIn KMail settings under Reading > Messages, check if 'Use fallback web engine when possible' or similar QWebEngine-based viewer is selectedAffected if QWebEngine-based HTML viewer is selected (this is the vulnerable component)
You are affected if your KMail version is 5.3.0 or lower AND you have HTML email rendering enabled with the QWebEngine viewer selected.
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 dataUpgrade to a patched version of KMail that either disables JavaScript in QWebEngine or implements proper HTML sanitization before rendering email content. As a temporary workaround, disable HTML email rendering and use plain text view.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA3.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2016-7968 — 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-2016-7968 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
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data