How severe is CVE-2016-2554?

CVE-2016-2554 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 9.8, rated critical severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.

Is CVE-2016-2554 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 11% (95th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2016-2554?

CVE-2016-2554 primarily affects Php. In total, 30 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.

How do I fix CVE-2016-2554?

Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its critical severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.

When was CVE-2016-2554 published?

CVE-2016-2554 was published on 2016-05-16 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2016-2554

CVE-2016-2554 is a critical-severity vulnerability in Php with a CVSS 3.x base score of 9.8. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score of 11% places it in the 95th percentile, indicating an elevated likelihood of exploitation. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-119.

Key facts

Severity: Critical (CVSS 3.x base score 9.8)
CVSS v2: 10.0
EPSS exploit prediction: 11% (95th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-119
Affected product: Php
Published: 2016-05-16
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

Stack-based buffer overflow in ext/phar/tar.c in PHP before 5.5.32, 5.6.x before 5.6.18, and 7.x before 7.0.3 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (application crash) or possibly have unspecified other impact via a crafted TAR archive.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2016-2554?: Stack-based buffer overflow in ext/phar/tar.c in PHP before 5.5.32, 5.6.x before 5.6.18, and 7.x before 7.0.3 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (application crash) or possibly have unspecified other impact via a crafted TAR archive.
How severe is CVE-2016-2554?: CVE-2016-2554 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 9.8, rated critical severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.
Is CVE-2016-2554 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 11% (95th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2016-2554?: CVE-2016-2554 primarily affects Php. In total, 30 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.
How do I fix CVE-2016-2554?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its critical severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.
When was CVE-2016-2554 published?: CVE-2016-2554 was published on 2016-05-16 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (30)

cpe:2.3:a:php:php:7.0.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:7.0.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:7.0.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.0:alpha1:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.0:alpha2:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.0:alpha3:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.0:alpha4:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.0:alpha5:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.0:beta1:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.0:beta2:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.0:beta3:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.0:beta4:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.5:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.6:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.7:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.8:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.9:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.10:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.11:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.12:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.13:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.14:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.15:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.16:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:php:php:5.6.17:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

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Other CWE-119 (Improper Restriction of Operations within the Bounds of a Memory Buffer) vulnerabilities

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CVE-2022-27625 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): A vulnerability regarding improper restriction of operations within the bounds of a memory buffer is found in the…
CVE-2022-27624 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): A vulnerability regarding improper restriction of operations within the bounds of a memory buffer is found in the…
CVE-2020-11896 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): The Treck TCP/IP stack before 6.0.1.66 allows Remote Code Execution, related to IPv4 tunneling.

Browse all CWE-119 (Improper Restriction of Operations within the Bounds of a Memory Buffer) vulnerabilities →

Threat intelligence

Threat-intel indicators referencing this CVE:

45.84.120.3 (ipv4-addr)
79.137.34.248 (ipv4-addr)
221.161.235.168 (ipv4-addr)
200.196.50.91 (ipv4-addr)
187.51.208.158 (ipv4-addr)
187.141.71.166 (ipv4-addr)
187.110.238.50 (ipv4-addr)
113.164.66.10 (ipv4-addr)