How severe is CVE-2017-16938?

CVE-2017-16938 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 7.8, rated high severity. It is exploitable over local access with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.

Is CVE-2017-16938 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 2% (76th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2017-16938?

CVE-2017-16938 affects Optipng Project Optipng. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.

How do I fix CVE-2017-16938?

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

When was CVE-2017-16938 published?

CVE-2017-16938 was published on 2017-11-24 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2017-16938

CVE-2017-16938 is a high-severity vulnerability in Optipng Project Optipng with a CVSS 3.x base score of 7.8. 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-119.

Key facts

Severity: High (CVSS 3.x base score 7.8)
CVSS v2: 6.8
EPSS exploit prediction: 2% (76th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-119
Affected product: Optipng Project Optipng
Published: 2017-11-24
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

A global buffer overflow in OptiPNG 0.7.6 allows remote attackers to cause a denial-of-service attack or other unspecified impact with a maliciously crafted GIF format file, related to an uncontrolled loop in the LZWReadByte function of the gifread.c file.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2017-16938?: A global buffer overflow in OptiPNG 0.7.6 allows remote attackers to cause a denial-of-service attack or other unspecified impact with a maliciously crafted GIF format file, related to an uncontrolled loop in the LZWReadByte function of the gifread.c file.
How severe is CVE-2017-16938?: CVE-2017-16938 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 7.8, rated high severity. It is exploitable over local access with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.
Is CVE-2017-16938 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 2% (76th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2017-16938?: CVE-2017-16938 affects Optipng Project Optipng. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.
How do I fix CVE-2017-16938?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its high severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.
When was CVE-2017-16938 published?: CVE-2017-16938 was published on 2017-11-24 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (1)

cpe:2.3:a:optipng_project:optipng:0.7.6:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

More vulnerabilities in Optipng Project Optipng

CVE-2015-7801 — High (CVSS 8.8): Use-after-free vulnerability in OptiPNG 0.6.4 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted PNG file.
CVE-2016-3982 — High (CVSS 8.8): Off-by-one error in the bmp_rle4_fread function in pngxrbmp.c in OptiPNG before 0.7.6 allows remote attackers to cause…
CVE-2023-43907 — High (CVSS 7.8): OptiPNG v0.7.7 was discovered to contain a global buffer overflow via the 'buffer' variable at gifread.c.
CVE-2017-1000229 — High (CVSS 7.8): Integer overflow bug in function minitiff_read_info() of optipng 0.7.6 allows an attacker to remotely execute code or…
CVE-2016-3981 — High (CVSS 7.8): Heap-based buffer overflow in the bmp_read_rows function in pngxrbmp.c in OptiPNG before 0.7.6 allows remote attackers…
CVE-2009-0749 — High (CVSS 7.8): Use-after-free vulnerability in the GIFReadNextExtension function in lib/pngxtern/gif/gifread.c in OptiPNG 0.6.2 and…

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