CVE-2016-5195

Published Nov 10, 2016

Last updated 2 months ago

Overview

AI description

Automated description summarized from trusted sources.

CVE-2016-5195, commonly known as "Dirty COW," is a local privilege escalation vulnerability found in the Linux kernel. The flaw stems from a race condition within the kernel's memory subsystem, specifically in how it handles the copy-on-write (COW) mechanism for private read-only memory mappings. This race condition allows an unprivileged local user to gain write access to memory regions that should otherwise be read-only. This vulnerability enables an attacker to modify read-only files, which can lead to an increase in their privileges on the system. Discovered and publicly disclosed in October 2016, the "Dirty COW" bug had reportedly existed in the Linux kernel since September 2007, affecting versions 2.6.22 and higher. Exploits leveraging this technique were observed in the wild prior to its fix.

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."
Source
chrome-cve-admin@google.com
NVD status
Analyzed
Products
ubuntu_linux, linux_kernel, enterprise_linux, enterprise_linux_aus, enterprise_linux_eus, enterprise_linux_long_life, enterprise_linux_tus, debian_linux, fedora, pan-os, cloud_backup, hci_storage_nodes, oncommand_balance, oncommand_performance_manager, oncommand_unified_manager_for_clustered_data_ontap, ontap_select_deploy_administration_utility, snapprotect, solidfire

Risk scores

CVSS 3.1

Type
Primary
Base score
7
Impact score
5.9
Exploitability score
1
Vector string
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Severity
HIGH

CVSS 2.0

Type
Primary
Base score
7.2
Impact score
10
Exploitability score
3.9
Vector string
AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C

Known exploits

Data from CISA

Vulnerability name
Linux Kernel Race Condition Vulnerability
Exploit added on
Mar 3, 2022
Exploit action due
Mar 24, 2022
Required action
Apply updates per vendor instructions.

Weaknesses

nvd@nist.gov
CWE-362
134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0
CWE-362

Social media

Hype score
Not currently trending
  1. 2026 Linux 重置密码教程大全 - Dirty Cow (CVE-2016-5195) - Dirty Pipe (CVE-2022-0847) - io_uring UAF (CVE-2022-2602) - Copy Fail (CVE-2026-31431) - io_uring ZCRX freelist (CVE-2026-43121) - Dirty Frag (CVE-2026-43284 CVE-2026-43500) - Fragnesia (CVE-2026-46300)

    @furlingdu

    1 Jun 2026

    158 Impressions

    0 Retweets

    0 Likes

    0 Bookmarks

    0 Replies

    0 Quotes

  2. Top 5 Trending CVEs: 1 - CVE-2025-55182 2 - CVE-2016-5195 3 - CVE-2026-20223 4 - CVE-2026-41940 5 - CVE-2026-41089 #cve #cvetrends #cveshield #cybersecurity https://t.co/4Fua3CAN6W

    @CVEShield

    23 May 2026

    322 Impressions

    0 Retweets

    0 Likes

    0 Bookmarks

    0 Replies

    0 Quotes

  3. - Dirty Cow (CVE-2016-5195) - Dirty Pipe (CVE-2022-0847) - io_uring UAF (CVE-2022-2602) - Copy Fail (CVE-2026-31431) - io_uring ZCRX freelist (CVE-2026-43121) - Dirty Frag (CVE-2026-43284 CVE-2026-43500) - Fragnesia (CVE-2026-46300) -PinTheft (CVE-2026-43494)

    @luadoles

    22 May 2026

    193 Impressions

    0 Retweets

    0 Likes

    0 Bookmarks

    1 Reply

    0 Quotes

  4. Linux 重置密码大全 - Dirty Cow (CVE-2016-5195) - Dirty Pipe (CVE-2022-0847) - io_uring UAF (CVE-2022-2602) - Copy Fail (CVE-2026-31431) - io_uring ZCRX freelist (CVE-2026-43121) - Dirty Frag (CVE-2026-43284 CVE-2026-43500) - Fragnesia (CVE-2026-46300) -PinTheft (CVE-2026-4

    @hsn8086k

    22 May 2026

    37707 Impressions

    101 Retweets

    633 Likes

    317 Bookmarks

    40 Replies

    7 Quotes

  5. Top 5 Trending CVEs: 1 - CVE-2026-44578 2 - CVE-2016-5195 3 - CVE-2026-0073 4 - CVE-2026-20841 5 - CVE-2025-14180 #cve #cvetrends #cveshield #cybersecurity https://t.co/4Fua3CAN6W

    @CVEShield

    15 May 2026

    320 Impressions

    0 Retweets

    1 Like

    0 Bookmarks

    0 Replies

    0 Quotes

  6. 2026 Linux 如何重置密碼 - Dirty Cow (CVE-2016-5195) - Dirty Pipe (CVE-2022-0847) - io_uring UAF (CVE-2022-2602) - Copy Fail (CVE-2026-31431) - io_uring ZCRX freelist (CVE-2026-43121) - Dirty Frag (CVE-2026-43284 CVE-2026-43500) - Fragnesia (CVE-2026-46300)

    @sayaalauun

    14 May 2026

    76 Impressions

    0 Retweets

    0 Likes

    0 Bookmarks

    0 Replies

    0 Quotes

  7. Them: Linux is most secure OS Me: Yes - Dirty Cow (CVE-2016-5195) - Dirty Pipe (CVE-2022-0847) - io_uring UAF (CVE-2022-2602) - Copy Fail (CVE-2026-31431) - io_uring ZCRX freelist (CVE-2026-43121) - Dirty Frag (CVE-2026-43284 CVE-2026-43500) - Fragnesia (CVE-2026-46300)

    @hetmehtaa

    14 May 2026

    72711 Impressions

    41 Retweets

    378 Likes

    163 Bookmarks

    40 Replies

    15 Quotes

  8. 2026 Linux 重置密码教程大全 - Dirty Cow (CVE-2016-5195) - Dirty Pipe (CVE-2022-0847) - io_uring UAF (CVE-2022-2602) - Copy Fail (CVE-2026-31431) - io_uring ZCRX freelist (CVE-2026-43121) - Dirty Frag (CVE-2026-43284 CVE-2026-43500) - Fragnesia (CVE-2026-46300)

    @hsn8086k

    14 May 2026

    69819 Impressions

    179 Retweets

    1061 Likes

    459 Bookmarks

    12 Replies

    11 Quotes

  9. Top 30 CVEs for linux/linux_kernel (30 days). Top CVEs: CVE-1999-0128, CVE-2016-5195, CVE-2024-1086 Vendors: linux VulnSocial — your risk exposure provider. https://t.co/GRA33Epy7w #vulnsocial #Linux #Linuxkernel #CVE #CyberSecurity #VulnerabilityManagement

    @vulnsocial

    9 Mar 2026

    2 Impressions

    0 Retweets

    0 Likes

    0 Bookmarks

    0 Replies

    0 Quotes

  10. Top 30 CVEs for debian (30 days). Top CVEs: CVE-2011-2523, CVE-2016-5195, CVE-2025-49113 Vendors: debian VulnSocial — your risk exposure provider. #vulnsocial #Debian #CVE #CyberSecurity #VulnerabilityManagement https://t.co/iUn30r73W2

    @vulnsocial

    3 Mar 2026

    0 Impressions

    0 Retweets

    0 Likes

    0 Bookmarks

    0 Replies

    0 Quotes

Configurations

References

Sources include official advisories and independent security research.