How severe is CVE-2016-5691?

CVE-2016-5691 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-2016-5691 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 5% (92nd percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2016-5691?

CVE-2016-5691 primarily affects Imagemagick. In total, 9 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.

How do I fix CVE-2016-5691?

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-2016-5691 published?

CVE-2016-5691 was published on 2016-12-13 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2016-5691

CVE-2016-5691 is a critical-severity vulnerability in Imagemagick with a CVSS 3.x base score of 9.8. It is not currently listed as actively exploited by CISA, and its EPSS exploit-prediction score is low. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-20.

Key facts

Severity: Critical (CVSS 3.x base score 9.8)
CVSS v2: 7.5
EPSS exploit prediction: 5% (92nd percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-20
Affected product: Imagemagick
Published: 2016-12-13
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

The DCM reader in ImageMagick before 6.9.4-5 and 7.x before 7.0.1-7 allows remote attackers to have unspecified impact by leveraging lack of validation of (1) pixel.red, (2) pixel.green, and (3) pixel.blue.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2016-5691?: The DCM reader in ImageMagick before 6.9.4-5 and 7.x before 7.0.1-7 allows remote attackers to have unspecified impact by leveraging lack of validation of (1) pixel.red, (2) pixel.green, and (3) pixel.blue.
How severe is CVE-2016-5691?: CVE-2016-5691 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-2016-5691 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 5% (92nd percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2016-5691?: CVE-2016-5691 primarily affects Imagemagick. In total, 9 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.
How do I fix CVE-2016-5691?: 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-2016-5691 published?: CVE-2016-5691 was published on 2016-12-13 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (9)

cpe:2.3:o:oracle:solaris:11.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:imagemagick:imagemagick:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:imagemagick:imagemagick:7.0.1-0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:imagemagick:imagemagick:7.0.1-1:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:imagemagick:imagemagick:7.0.1-2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:imagemagick:imagemagick:7.0.1-3:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:imagemagick:imagemagick:7.0.1-4:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:imagemagick:imagemagick:7.0.1-5:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:imagemagick:imagemagick:7.0.1-6:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

More vulnerabilities in Imagemagick

CVE-2004-0981 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Buffer overflow in the EXIF parsing routine in ImageMagick before 6.1.0 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary…
CVE-2023-34152 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): A vulnerability was found in ImageMagick. This security flaw cause a remote code execution vulnerability in OpenBlob…
CVE-2019-19952 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): In ImageMagick 7.0.9-7 Q16, there is a use-after-free in the function MngInfoDiscardObject of coders/png.c, related to…
CVE-2019-19948 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): In ImageMagick 7.0.8-43 Q16, there is a heap-based buffer overflow in the function WriteSGIImage of coders/sgi.c.
CVE-2018-16329 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): In ImageMagick before 7.0.8-8, a NULL pointer dereference exists in the GetMagickProperty function in…
CVE-2018-16328 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): In ImageMagick before 7.0.8-8, a NULL pointer dereference exists in the CheckEventLogging function in MagickCore/log.c.

All CVEs affecting Imagemagick →

Other CWE-20 (Improper Input Validation) vulnerabilities

CVE-2026-48316 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): ColdFusion versions 2025.9, 2023.20 and earlier are affected by an Improper Input Validation vulnerability that could…
CVE-2026-48281 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): ColdFusion versions 2025.9, 2023.20 and earlier are affected by an Improper Input Validation vulnerability that could…
CVE-2026-48277 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): ColdFusion versions 2025.9, 2023.20 and earlier are affected by an Improper Input Validation vulnerability that could…
CVE-2026-48055 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Streambert is a cross-platform Electron Desktop App to stream and download any video media. In versions 2.4.0 and…
CVE-2026-34910 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): A malicious actor with access to the network could exploit an Improper Input Validation vulnerability found in UniFi OS…
CVE-2026-33587 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Lack of user input sanitisation in Open Notebook v1.8.3 allows the application user to execute Python code (and…

Browse all CWE-20 (Improper Input Validation) vulnerabilities →