CVE-2016-5195

HIGHCISA KEVEPSS 100th pctl

7.0

CVSS v3

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."

CWE-362Race Condition

How to fix

Remediation Available

linuxDebian

Fixed in:4.7.8-1CVE-2016-5195

linuxUbuntu

Fixed in:3.13.0-100.147USN-3105-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2019-04-02.

Fixed in:4.4.0-45.66USN-3106-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2021-04-02.

linux-image-3.13.0-100-genericUbuntu

Fixed in:3.13.0-100.147USN-3105-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2019-04-02.

linux-image-3.13.0-100-generic-lpaeUbuntu

Fixed in:3.13.0-100.147USN-3105-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2019-04-02.

linux-image-3.13.0-100-lowlatencyUbuntu

Fixed in:3.13.0-100.147USN-3105-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2019-04-02.

linux-image-3.13.0-100-powerpc-e500Ubuntu

Fixed in:3.13.0-100.147USN-3105-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2019-04-02.

linux-image-3.13.0-100-powerpc-e500mcUbuntu

Fixed in:3.13.0-100.147USN-3105-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2019-04-02.

linux-image-3.13.0-100-powerpc-smpUbuntu

Fixed in:3.13.0-100.147USN-3105-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2019-04-02.

linux-image-3.13.0-100-powerpc64-embUbuntu

Fixed in:3.13.0-100.147USN-3105-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2019-04-02.

linux-image-3.13.0-100-powerpc64-smpUbuntu

Fixed in:3.13.0-100.147USN-3105-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2019-04-02.

linux-image-4.4.0-1029-raspi2Ubuntu

Fixed in:4.4.0-1029.36USN-3106-3

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2021-04-02.

linux-image-4.4.0-1032-snapdragonUbuntu

Fixed in:4.4.0-1032.36USN-3106-4

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2021-04-02.

linux-image-4.4.0-45-genericUbuntu

Fixed in:4.4.0-45.66~14.04.1USN-3106-2

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2019-04-02.

Fixed in:4.4.0-45.66USN-3106-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2021-04-02.

linux-image-4.4.0-45-generic-lpaeUbuntu

Fixed in:4.4.0-45.66~14.04.1USN-3106-2

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2019-04-02.

Fixed in:4.4.0-45.66USN-3106-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2021-04-02.

linux-image-4.4.0-45-lowlatencyUbuntu

Fixed in:4.4.0-45.66~14.04.1USN-3106-2

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2019-04-02.

Fixed in:4.4.0-45.66USN-3106-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2021-04-02.

linux-image-4.4.0-45-powerpc-e500mcUbuntu

Fixed in:4.4.0-45.66~14.04.1USN-3106-2

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2019-04-02.

Fixed in:4.4.0-45.66USN-3106-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2021-04-02.

linux-image-4.4.0-45-powerpc-smpUbuntu

Fixed in:4.4.0-45.66~14.04.1USN-3106-2

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2019-04-02.

Fixed in:4.4.0-45.66USN-3106-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2021-04-02.

linux-image-4.4.0-45-powerpc64-embUbuntu

Fixed in:4.4.0-45.66~14.04.1USN-3106-2

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2019-04-02.

Fixed in:4.4.0-45.66USN-3106-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2021-04-02.

linux-image-4.4.0-45-powerpc64-smpUbuntu

Fixed in:4.4.0-45.66~14.04.1USN-3106-2

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2019-04-02.

Fixed in:4.4.0-45.66USN-3106-1

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2021-04-02.

linux-lts-xenialUbuntu

Fixed in:4.4.0-45.66~14.04.1USN-3106-2

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2019-04-02.

linux-raspi2Ubuntu

Fixed in:4.4.0-1029.36USN-3106-3

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2021-04-02.

linux-snapdragonUbuntu

Fixed in:4.4.0-1032.36USN-3106-4

This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2021-04-02.

TridentStack Control can deploy fixes like this automatically across your Windows, macOS, and Linux fleet. See how it works

Remediation is compiled from vendor and distribution security advisories. Always confirm against the linked source for your exact version and platform.

CVSS v3 Vector

Exploitability

Attack VectorLocal

Attack ComplexityHigh

Privileges RequiredLow

User InteractionNone

ScopeUnchanged

Impact

ConfidentialityHigh

IntegrityHigh

AvailabilityHigh

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Exploit Intelligence

83.52%probability of exploitation in 30 days

100thpercentile

Very high risk: more likely to be exploited than 100% of all known CVEs.

Known Exploited Vulnerability (CISA KEV)

Linux Kernel Race Condition Vulnerability

Race condition in mm/gup.c in the Linux kernel allows local users to escalate privileges.

Apply updates per vendor instructions.

Remediation due: 2022-03-24

References

Patch1

git.kernel.org

Exploit5

Third-Party Advisory18

Mailing List26

Related Vulnerabilities

Other CWE-362 (Race Condition) vulnerabilities, ordered by exploit likelihood. View all

CVE	Severity	CVSS	EPSS	Exploited	Fix
CVE-2024-6387	High	8.1	100%	-	Fix
CVE-2023-36884	High	7.5	99%	KEV + Ransom	Fix
CVE-2018-15473	Medium	5.3	99%	-	Fix
CVE-2024-27983	High	8.2	87%	-	Fix
CVE-2014-0226	Medium	6.8	86%	-	Fix
CVE-2023-28126	Medium	5.9	67%	-	-

Common questions

How do I fix CVE-2016-5195?

Published advisories record a fix for 22 affected products. The "How to fix" section on this page lists the fixed version and source advisory for each one, so apply the entry matching what you actually run.

Is CVE-2016-5195 being actively exploited?

Yes. CVE-2016-5195 is listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, which means exploitation has been observed in the wild. US federal agencies were required to remediate it by 2022-03-24. Treat it as a priority whatever its CVSS score says.

How severe is CVE-2016-5195?

CVE-2016-5195 has a CVSS v3 base score of 7.0, rated high. CVSS rates the technical impact if the vulnerability is exploited, not how likely that is, so weigh it alongside the exploit-prediction score when you decide what to patch first.

What does CVE-2016-5195 affect?

Published advisories record a fix for linux (Debian), linux (Ubuntu), linux-image-3.13.0-100-generic (Ubuntu), linux-image-3.13.0-100-generic-lpae (Ubuntu), and 18 more. Only products with a sourced advisory are listed, so treat this as what we can cite rather than a complete inventory.

Embed a live status badge for CVE-2016-5195

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This vulnerability is actively exploited in the wild

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This product uses NVD data but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. EPSS scores courtesy of FIRST.org (https://www.first.org/epss). Source: CISA KEV Catalog. Data as of 2026-06-17.