The Tomcat init script in the tomcat7 package before 7.0.56-3+deb8u4 and tomcat8 package…
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Local
- Privileges required
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- —
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- High · High · High
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 3 fixed, 3 without a fix
Attack profile from CVSS 3.0 · NVD. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat.
Summary
The Tomcat init script in the tomcat7 package before 7.0.56-3+deb8u4 and tomcat8 package before 8.0.14-1+deb8u3 on Debian jessie and the tomcat6 and libtomcat6-java packages before 6.0.35-1ubuntu3.8 on Ubuntu 12.04 LTS, the tomcat7 and libtomcat7-java packages before 7.0.52-1ubuntu0.7 on Ubuntu 14.04 LTS, and tomcat8 and libtomcat8-java packages before 8.0.32-1ubuntu1.2 on Ubuntu 16.04 LTS allows local users with access to the tomcat account to gain root privileges via a symlink attack on the Catalina log file, as demonstrated by /var/log/tomcat7/catalina.out.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
Not available: CISA has not published SSVC decision points for this record.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | — | all versions | — | No fix listed | CNA |
- — Vendor— Affected all versions Fixed in — No fix listed CNA
CPE configurations NVD · 7
| CPE | Versions | Role | Vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| cpe:2.3:a:apache:tomcat:6.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 6.0 | Vulnerable | Apache |
| cpe:2.3:a:apache:tomcat:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 7.0 | Vulnerable | Apache |
| cpe:2.3:a:apache:tomcat:8.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 8.0 | Vulnerable | Apache |
| cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:12.04:*:*:*:lts:*:*:* | 12.04 | Running on | Canonical |
| cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:14.04:*:*:*:lts:*:*:* | 14.04 | Running on | Canonical |
| cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:16.04:*:*:*:lts:*:*:* | 16.04 | Running on | Canonical |
| cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:8.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 8.0 | Running on | Debian |
- cpe:2.3:a:apache:tomcat:6.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 6.0 Vulnerable ·Apache
- cpe:2.3:a:apache:tomcat:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 7.0 Vulnerable ·Apache
- cpe:2.3:a:apache:tomcat:8.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 8.0 Vulnerable ·Apache
- cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:12.04:*:*:*:lts:*:*:* Versions 12.04 Running on ·Canonical
- cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:14.04:*:*:*:lts:*:*:* Versions 14.04 Running on ·Canonical
- cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:16.04:*:*:*:lts:*:*:* Versions 16.04 Running on ·Canonical
- cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:8.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 8.0 Running on ·Debian
Remediation
Red Hat 3 advisories
- RHSA-2017:0455 Released 2017-03-07 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat JBoss Web Server 3.1.0 security and enhancement update
- Red Hat JBoss Web Server 3.1 for RHEL 6 hibernate4-c3p0-eap6-4.2.23-1.Final_redhat_1.1.ep6.el6, hibernate4-core-eap6-4.2.23-1.Final_redhat_1.1.ep6.el6, hibernate4-eap6-4.2.23-1.Final_redhat_1.1.ep6.el6 +34
- RHSA-2017:0456 Released 2017-03-07 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat JBoss Web Server 3.1.0 security and enhancement update
- Red Hat JBoss Web Server 3.1 for RHEL 7 hibernate4-c3p0-eap6-4.2.23-1.Final_redhat_1.1.ep6.el7, hibernate4-core-eap6-4.2.23-1.Final_redhat_1.1.ep6.el7, hibernate4-eap6-4.2.23-1.Final_redhat_1.1.ep6.el7 +34
- RHSA-2017:0457 Released 2017-03-07 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat JBoss Web Server security and enhancement update
- Red Hat JBoss Web Server 3.1
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Important. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Web Server 2 | Affected | No fix planned: Will not fix |
| Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Web Server 3 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat JBoss Web Server 3 | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat JBoss Web Server 3.1 | Fixed | RHSA-2017:0457 |
| Red Hat JBoss Web Server 3.1 for RHEL 6 | Fixed | RHSA-2017:0455 |
| Red Hat JBoss Web Server 3.1 for RHEL 7 | Fixed | RHSA-2017:0456 |
Not affected: 10 products
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
- Red Hat JBoss Data Grid 6
- Red Hat JBoss Data Virtualization 6
- Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 6
- Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 7
- Red Hat JBoss Operations Network 3
- Red Hat JBoss Portal 6
- Red Hat Software Collections
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2016-1240
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-8c5c-v572-37xf
References
Exploit 1
More Apache Tomcat vulnerabilities
- TI-2025-18529 Apache Tomcat: Potential RCE and/or information disclosure and/or information corruption with partial PUT KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 10.0
- TI-2020-01862 Improper privilege management in Apache Tomcat KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2016-07192 Improper access control in Apache Tomcat KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2017-09342 Unrestricted file upload in Apache Tomcat KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.1
- TI-2017-09340 Unrestricted file upload in Apache Tomcat KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.1
- TI-2026-26741 Apache Tomcat: Fix for CVE-2026-29146 allowed bypass of EncryptInterceptor KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 7.5
Sources
- CVE-2016-1240 · CVE Program
- CVE-2016-1240 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-8c5c-v572-37xf · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2016-1240 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. Sources and licences