Debian LinuxOperating system · Debian
CVE-2016-9955
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 · uneditedThe SimpleSAML_XML_Validator class constructor in SimpleSAMLphp before 1.14.11 might allow remote attackers to spoof signatures on SAML 1 responses or possibly cause a denial of service (memory consumption) by leveraging improper conversion of return values to boolean.
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 confidenceThe SimpleSAML_XML_Validator class in SimpleSAMLphp before 1.14.11 has a flaw in its constructor where return values are improperly converted to boolean. This allows remote attackers to spoof signatures on SAML 1 responses by causing signature validation to incorrectly pass when it should fail. It can also cause memory consumption leading to denial of service.
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
Debian LinuxOperating system
= 7.0< 1.14.11CVSS 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
- High
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:H/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/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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Locate SimpleSAMLphp installationSearch for the SimpleSAMLphp directory or check for the version file (typically VERSION or lib/SimpleSAML/version.php) in your webroot or installation directoryAffected if SimpleSAMLphp is present but the version cannot be determined or is below 1.14.11
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Determine installed SimpleSAMLphp versionOpen the VERSION file or check the version defined in lib/SimpleSAML/version.php; compare the version number to 1.14.11Affected if The installed version is less than 1.14.11 (for example, 1.14.10, 1.14.9, 1.13, etc.)
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Identify if SAML 1 responses are processedCheck your SimpleSAMLphp configuration and IdP/SP metadata for SAML 1.1 protocol usage; review authentication source configurations in authsources.php or IdP metadata that process SAML 1 responsesAffected if Your IdP or SP processes SAML 1 (not SAML 2) responses and uses SimpleSAMLphp version below 1.14.11
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Verify XML signature validation is enabledInspect your SP or IdP metadata configuration for 'signing' or 'signature' settings; check if the 'validateXML' option is enabled in your authentication source configurationAffected if XML signature validation is configured for SAML 1 responses and SimpleSAMLphp is below version 1.14.11
You are affected if SimpleSAMLphp version below 1.14.11 is installed and processes SAML 1 responses with XML signature validation enabled.
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 data1.14.11
Upgrade SimpleSAMLphp to version 1.14.11 or later to obtain the patched SimpleSAML_XML_Validator class constructor that properly handles boolean conversion of signature validation return values.
Fix this in Debian Linux
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,176.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2016-9955 — 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-2016-9955 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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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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