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CVE-2016-5195

Linux Kernel Race Condition Vulnerability

  • High 7.0
  • Exploited: added to CISA KEV 3 Mar 2022
  • A public exploit reference is listed

Description

Race condition in mm/gup.c in the Linux kernel 2.x through 4.x before 4.8.3 allows local users to gain privileges by leveraging incorrect handling of a copy-on-write (COW) feature to write to a read-only memory mapping, as exploited in the wild in October 2016, aka "Dirty COW."

Key facts

Published
10 Nov 2016
Last changed
4 Nov 2025
Assigned by
Chrome
KEV added
3 Mar 2022
KEV fix due
24 Mar 2022
EPSS
83.524% likely to be exploited in the next 30 days, higher than 99.69% of CVEs (scores for 15 Nov 2026)
SSVC (CISA)
Exploitation: active; Automatable: no; Technical impact: total

Severity scores

Each score is shown as its source gave it. They are not averaged or merged.

  • 7.0CVSS 3.1, Highfrom CISA (ADP container)CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

What to do

  • Apply updates per vendor instructions.CISA KEV required action

Historical context and remediation

This reference retains the original CVE publication date. A recent record update does not mean a new attack occurred.

No separately sourced impact summary is available on this page yet. Consult the description, version data and dated exploitation evidence.

Version statuses below come from the CNA. An “unaffected” version is not necessarily a currently supported release or proof of a patch date. EPSS is a dated risk estimate, not a count of historical attacks.

Read the original CVE record.

Affected products

VendorProductVersions
n/an/a
  • n/a (affected)

Timeline

  1. 10 Nov 2016 Published
  2. 3 Mar 2022 CVE-2016-5195 added to CISA KEV
  3. 3 Mar 2022 Added to the CISA KEV catalogue

Weakness

References