CRITICAL
ghostscript: Type confusion in .initialize_dsc_parser allows remote code execution
Published May 23, 2017
9.8
CRITICALCVSS 3.0
EPSS 6.42%
Description
Ghostscript before 9.21 might allow remote attackers to bypass the SAFER mode protection mechanism and consequently execute arbitrary code by leveraging type confusion in .initialize_dsc_parser.
Affected products
No data.
- ≤ 9.20
No data.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
ghostscript-0:8.70-21.el6_8.1
Fixed · RHSA-2017:0014
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
ghostscript-0:9.07-20.el7_3.1
Fixed · RHSA-2017:0013
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5
ghostscript
Will not fix
Red Hat OpenShift Enterprise 2
ghostscript
Will not fix
| Product | Package | State | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 | ghostscript-0:8.70-21.el6_8.1 | Fixed | RHSA-2017:0014 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 | ghostscript-0:9.07-20.el7_3.1 | Fixed | RHSA-2017:0013 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 | ghostscript | Will not fix | n/a |
| Red Hat OpenShift Enterprise 2 | ghostscript | Will not fix | n/a |
No package ranges for this CVE.
Remediation
No remediation recorded yet.
Metrics
No CVSS v4.0 score for this CVE.
No CVSS v3.1 score for this CVE.
9.8 CRITICAL NVD
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Attack Vector Network
Attack Complexity Low
Privileges Required None
User Interaction None
Scope Unchanged
Confidentiality Impact High
Integrity Impact High
Availability Impact High
1 other source (Red Hat) ▾
5.8 MEDIUM Red Hat
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:L
Attack Vector Network
Attack Complexity High
Privileges Required None
User Interaction Required
Scope Changed
Confidentiality Impact Low
Integrity Impact Low
Availability Impact Low
7.5 HIGH NVD
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P
Access Vector Network
Access Complexity Low
Authentication None
Confidentiality Impact Partial
Integrity Impact Partial
Availability Impact Partial
This CVE is not in the KEV list.
No CISA SSVC assessment for this CVE yet.
6.42% 0.06419
Estimated probability of exploitation in the wild in the next 30 days (FIRST EPSS). As of Oct 1, 2026.
EPSS probability 0.06419
Score over time
2022–2026- EPSS v2
- EPSS v3
- EPSS v4
- EPSS v5
Percentile over time
- EPSS v2
- EPSS v3
- EPSS v4
- EPSS v5
Table of values (16 key points)
Flat stretches are collapsed; showing up to 120 newest points.
| Date | Score | Percentile | Model |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 1, 2026 | 6.42% (0.06419) | 93.49th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Jun 15, 2026 | 6.47% (0.06471) | 92.85th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Jan 14, 2026 | 3.54% (0.03536) | 87.31th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Mar 30, 2025 | 0.83% (0.00828) | 72.32th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Mar 29, 2025 | 2.48% (0.02476) | 75.44th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Mar 17, 2025 | 1.06% (0.01061) | 76.11th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Dec 12, 2024 | 10.53% (0.10526) | 95.28th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Jul 18, 2023 | 10.53% (0.10526) | 94.23th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| May 8, 2023 | 7.72% (0.07718) | 93.17th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| May 2, 2023 | 5.61% (0.05613) | 92.08th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Apr 1, 2023 | 5.43% (0.05429) | 91.93th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 7, 2023 | 5.12% (0.05120) | 91.69th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 6, 2023 | 7.34% (0.07343) | 92.53th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Apr 1, 2022 | 7.34% (0.07343) | 91.80th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Feb 16, 2022 | 7.34% (0.07343) | 80.75th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Feb 4, 2022 | 7.15% (0.07154) | 80.03th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
Weaknesses (2)
References (12)
- http://git.ghostscript.com/?p=ghostpdl.git%3Bh=875a0095f37626a721c7ff57d606a0f95af03913 x_refsource_CONFIRM
- http://rhn.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2017-0013.html vendor-advisoryx_refsource_REDHAT
- http://rhn.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2017-0014.html vendor-advisoryx_refsource_REDHAT
- http://www.debian.org/security/2016/dsa-3691 vendor-advisoryx_refsource_DEBIAN
- http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2016/10/05/15 mailing-listx_refsource_MLISTMailing ListPatch
- http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/95337 vdb-entryx_refsource_BIDThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry
- https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2016-7979 Vendor Advisory
- https://bugs.ghostscript.com/show_bug.cgi?id=697190 x_refsource_CONFIRMIssue TrackingPatch
- https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1382305 Issue Tracking
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2016-7979
- https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/201702-31 vendor-advisoryx_refsource_GENTOO
- https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2016-7979
| Link | Providers | Tags |
|---|---|---|
| http://git.ghostscript.com/?p=ghostpdl.git%3Bh=875a0095f37626a721c7ff57d606a0f95af03913 | x_refsource_CONFIRM | |
| http://rhn.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2017-0013.html | vendor-advisoryx_refsource_REDHAT | |
| http://rhn.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2017-0014.html | vendor-advisoryx_refsource_REDHAT | |
| http://www.debian.org/security/2016/dsa-3691 | vendor-advisoryx_refsource_DEBIAN | |
| http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2016/10/05/15 | mailing-listx_refsource_MLISTMailing ListPatch | |
| http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/95337 | vdb-entryx_refsource_BIDThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry | |
| https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2016-7979 | Vendor Advisory | |
| https://bugs.ghostscript.com/show_bug.cgi?id=697190 | x_refsource_CONFIRMIssue TrackingPatch | |
| https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1382305 | Issue Tracking | |
| https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2016-7979 | ||
| https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/201702-31 | vendor-advisoryx_refsource_GENTOO | |
| https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2016-7979 |
Change history (0)
No recorded changes yet.
Sources
CVE.org / MITRE
Status PUBLISHED
Assigner mitre
Published May 23, 2017
Updated Aug 6, 2024
Reserved Sep 9, 2016
Link CVE-2016-7979
CISA Vulnrichment
Updated n/a