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Ncbi ToolboxApplication · Nih

CVE-2018-16716

CRITICAL · 9.1 CVSS v3.0 Published 2019-05-02
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 2.2.26 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

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
A path traversal vulnerability exists in viewcgi.c in the 2.0.7 through 2.2.26 legacy versions of the NCBI ToolBox, which may result in reading of arbitrary files (i.e., significant information disclosure) or file deletion via the nph-viewgif.cgi query string.

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 confidence

A path traversal vulnerability in viewcgi.c in NCBI ToolBox legacy versions 2.0.7 through 2.2.26 allows remote attackers to manipulate the query string in the nph-viewgif.cgi CGI script to traverse directory paths, enabling unauthorized reading of arbitrary files on the system or deletion of files. The critical severity (CVSS 9.1) reflects the ease of exploitation and potential for significant information disclosure or data loss.

MitigationUpgrade to a patched version of NCBI ToolBox if available; otherwise, disable or remove the vulnerable nph-viewgif.cgi script. If the CGI is required, implement strict input validation on all query parameters to reject path traversal sequences (../) and restrict file access to intended directories.

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
Ncbi ToolboxApplication
Affected:>= 2.0.7, <= 2.2.26

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
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
None

CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Locate the nph-viewgif.cgi script
    Search the filesystem for the nph-viewgif.cgi file, typically found in CGI-bin directories (e.g., /cgi-bin/, /usr/lib/cgi-bin/, or application-specific paths). Use: find / -name 'nph-viewgif.cgi' 2>/dev/null
    Affected if The file exists on the system, indicating the vulnerable CGI script is present
  2. Determine NCBI ToolBox version
    Check for version information in the CGI script header, any README files, or the parent NCBI ToolBox installation directory. Look for version strings matching the pattern 2.0.7 through 2.2.26
    Affected if The installed version falls within >= 2.0.7 and <= 2.2.26
  3. Verify CGI is web-accessible
    Check web server configuration files (httpd.conf, nginx.conf) or attempt a web request to the CGI script endpoint (e.g., http://target/cgi-bin/nph-viewgif.cgi)
    Affected if The CGI script is accessible over HTTP/HTTPS, making it exploitable remotely
  4. Test for path traversal vulnerability
    Send a crafted query string with directory traversal sequences to the CGI script, such as: GET /cgi-bin/nph-viewgif.cgi?../../etc/passwd HTTP/1.1. Compare the response to determine if arbitrary file contents are returned
    Affected if The script returns contents of files outside the intended directory when ../ sequences are used in the query string
  5. Review CGI source code if accessible
    If viewcgi.c source code is available on the system, inspect it for lack of input validation on query string parameters before file operations
    Affected if The code lacks sanitization for ../ path traversal sequences in parameters used for file access

The system is affected if nph-viewgif.cgi exists, the NCBI ToolBox version is between 2.0.7 and 2.2.26, and the CGI script is accessible and fails to sanitize path traversal sequences in query parameters.

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 2.2.26
Interim mitigation

Upgrade to a patched version of NCBI ToolBox if available; otherwise, disable or remove the vulnerable nph-viewgif.cgi script. If the CGI is required, implement strict input validation on all query parameters to reject path traversal sequences (../) and restrict file access to intended directories.

Fix this in Ncbi Toolbox Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
14.0 hours of engineering $2,490
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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-2018-16716 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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
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