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LibwmfApplication · Wvware

CVE-2016-9011

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.0 Published 2017-03-23
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
58/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
No privileges

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
The wmf_malloc function in api.c in libwmf 0.2.8.4 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (application crash) via a crafted wmf file, which triggers a memory allocation failure.

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 confidence

A crafted WMF file processed by libwmf 0.2.8.4 can trigger a memory allocation failure in the wmf_malloc function in api.c, causing the application to crash and result in denial of service.

MitigationUpdate libwmf to a patched version if available, or add proper error handling around the wmf_malloc function to gracefully handle allocation failures instead of crashing.

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
LibwmfApplication
Affected:= 0.2.8.4

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
None
Integrity
None
Availability
High

CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/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 if libwmf is installed
    Run 'dpkg -l | grep libwmf' on Debian-based systems, or 'rpm -qa | grep libwmf' on RHEL-based systems, or check for the library file 'libwmf.so' in standard paths like /usr/lib/
    Affected if libwmf version 0.2.8.4 is found on the system
  2. Confirm the exact libwmf version
    Run 'libwmf-config --version' or check the library file version directly using 'file' or examining package metadata
    Affected if The version returned is exactly 0.2.8.4
  3. Determine if WMF file processing is enabled
    Check if applications or services on the system use libwmf to process WMF files. Search for applications that link against libwmf using 'ldd' or review application dependencies
    Affected if Any application or service on the system processes WMF files using the vulnerable libwmf library
  4. Inspect for WMF file handling in deployed software
    Review web applications, document converters, or image processing tools that may accept WMF file uploads or process WMF content
    Affected if Software deployed in the environment processes WMF files from untrusted sources

The system is affected if libwmf version 0.2.8.4 is installed AND any application or service on the system processes WMF files using this library.

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.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Update libwmf to a patched version if available, or add proper error handling around the wmf_malloc function to gracefully handle allocation failures instead of crashing.

Fix this in Libwmf Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,750
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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-2016-9011 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