CVE-2016-5384 json
fontconfig before 2.12.1 does not validate offsets, which allows local users to trigger arbitrary free calls and consequently conduct doubl…
published 2016-08-12 10 y ago modified 2026-06-17 4 mo ago also EUVD-2016-6334
- cvss
- 7.8
- version 3.1, NVD
- cisa kev
- Not listed
- not in CISA's catalog
- epss
- 0.4%
- EPSS 0.4% chance of exploitation in 30 days, percentile 34%
- public exploits
- 0
- none known
Summary
fontconfig before 2.12.1 does not validate offsets, which allows local users to trigger arbitrary free calls and consequently conduct double free attacks and execute arbitrary code via a crafted cache file.
Patch / fix
- fontconfig_project fontconfig 2.12.1
- fontconfig Debian 14, Debian 13, Debian 12 2.11.0-6.5
debian advisories DEBIAN-CVE-2016-5384
- fontconfig Ubuntu 14.04 LTS 2.11.0-0ubuntu4.2
- fontconfig Ubuntu 16.04 LTS 2.11.94-0ubuntu1.1
ubuntu advisories UBUNTU-CVE-2016-5384
Ubuntu security data © Canonical Ltd., from https://github.com/canonical/ubuntu-security-notices via OSV; changed: normalised to fixed package versions per release. CC BY-SA 4.0
- fontconfig RHEL 7 2.10.95-10.el7
red hat advisories RHSA-2016:2601
- fontconfig SLES for SAP 12 SP1, SLES 12 SP1, SLED 12 SP1 +1 more 2.11.0-6.1
- fontconfig SLES for SAP 11 SP4, SLES 11 SP4, SLE Software Development Kit 11 SP4 2.6.0-10.19.1
suse advisories SUSE-SU-2016:2190-1SUSE-SU-2016:2186-1
Vendor advisories
What the vendors themselves say about their products: affected, fixed or not affected, and what to do.
red hat product security vex CVE-2016-5384 updated cvss 4.5
fontconfig: Possible double free due to insufficiently validated cache files
-
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 fontconfig Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 fontconfig Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization 3 mingw-virt-viewer, mingw32-virt-viewer, mingw64-virt-vieweraffected: no fix planned “Will not fix”
-
Red Hat Enterprise Linux Client (v. 7) fontconfig 2.10.95-10.el7 Red Hat Enterprise Linux Client Optional (v. 7) fontconfig-devel 2.10.95-10.el7, fontconfig-debuginfo 2.10.95-10.el7, fontconfig-devel-doc 2.10.95-10.el7 Red Hat Enterprise Linux ComputeNode (v. 7) fontconfig 2.10.95-10.el7 Red Hat Enterprise Linux ComputeNode Optional (v. 7) fontconfig-devel 2.10.95-10.el7, fontconfig-debuginfo 2.10.95-10.el7, fontconfig-devel-doc 2.10.95-10.el7 Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server (v. 7) fontconfig 2.10.95-10.el7 Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server Optional (v. 7) fontconfig-devel-doc 2.10.95-10.el7fixed: vendor fix RHSA-2016:2601
+2 more productsfewer
Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation (v. 7) fontconfig 2.10.95-10.el7 Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation Optional (v. 7) fontconfig-devel-doc 2.10.95-10.el7
Red Hat CSAF VEX © Red Hat, Inc., from https://security.access.redhat.com/data/csaf/v2/vex/; changed: reduced to product statuses and remediations. CC BY 4.0 · csaf
Exploit prediction
0.40% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days, higher than 34% of all scored CVEs (FIRST EPSS, 2026-11-09).
CVSS scores
| assigned by | version | score | vector |
|---|---|---|---|
| NVD | 3.1 | 7.8 | CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H |
| NVD | 2.0 | 4.6 | AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P |
Classification
- Weakness
-
- CWE-415 Double Free
References
-
cgit.freedesktop.org
/fontconfig/commit/?id=7a4a5bd7897d216f0794ca9dbce0a4a5c9d14940
patch, third-party-advisory
-
lists.freedesktop.org
/archives/fontconfig/2016-August/005792.html
mailing-list, patch, third-party-advisory
-
lists.fedoraproject.org
/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/GGOS4YYB7UYAWX5AEXJZHDIX4ZMSXSW5/
vendor-advisory
-
ubuntu.com
/usn/USN-3063-1
vendor-advisory, third-party-advisory
-
rhn.redhat.com
/errata/RHSA-2016-2601.html
vendor-advisory, third-party-advisory
-
debian.org
/security/2016/dsa-3644
vendor-advisory, third-party-advisory
-
lists.fedoraproject.org
/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/6CJ45VRAMCIISHOVKFVOQYQUSTUJP7FC/
vendor-advisory
-
securityfocus.com
/bid/92339
vdb-entry, third-party-advisory
Sources
- CVE List CVE-2016-5384
- NVD CVE-2016-5384
Fencer Intel keeps one entry per vulnerability: the CVE id wins, then GHSA, and records that alias each other are merged, except that two CVEs always keep separate entries. The same data is available as JSON.