CVE-2016-6559 - CVE House
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Status published Critical CVE-2016-6559

The BSD libc library's link_ntoa() function may be vulnerable to a classic buffer overflow

Vulnerability Description

Improper bounds checking of the obuf variable in the link_ntoa() function in linkaddr.c of the BSD libc library may allow an attacker to read or write from memory. The full impact and severity depends on the method of exploit and how the library is used by applications. According to analysis by FreeBSD developers, it is very unlikely that applications exist that utilize link_ntoa() in an exploitable manner, and the CERT/CC is not aware of any proof of concept. A blog post describes the functionality of link_ntoa() and points out that none of the base utilities use this function in an exploitable manner. For more information, please see FreeBSD Security Advisory SA-16:37.

Impact Analysis

Refer to official advisory for detailed impact metrics.

Remediation

Ensure systems are updated to the latest vendor-supplied patch levels.

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Credits & Attribution

No credits recorded in the NVD database.

Affected Vendor

Affected Software

libc library
Vulnerable Versions:
link_ntoa()

Timeline

Official Publish: July 13th, 2018
Last Modified: August 6th, 2024
Added to House: July 20th, 2026

CVSS Vectors

V3: CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Weaknesses (CWE)