Use-after-free vulnerability in the PK11_ImportDERPrivateKeyInfoAndReturnKey function in…
Priority MEDIUM 42Published · Updated
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- Required
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- —
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- High · High · High
- Fix status
- Fixed
Attack profile from CVSS 3.0 · NVD. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat.
Summary
Use-after-free vulnerability in the PK11_ImportDERPrivateKeyInfoAndReturnKey function in Mozilla Network Security Services (NSS) before 3.21.1, as used in Mozilla Firefox before 45.0, allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service or possibly have unspecified other impact via crafted key data with DER encoding.
Why it matters now
EPSS 0.02171 82nd percentileScored 2026-11-07
Fix Fixed Red Hat: 3 advisories
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
Remediation
Red Hat 3 advisories
- RHSA-2016:0684 Released 2016-04-25 · Red Hat rating Moderatenss and nspr security, bug fix, and enhancement update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux (v. 5 server) nspr-4.11.0-1.el5_11, nspr-4.11.0-1.el5_11.i386, nspr-4.11.0-1.el5_11.ia64 +21
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop (v. 5 client) nspr-4.11.0-1.el5_11, nspr-4.11.0-1.el5_11.i386, nss-3.21.0-6.el5_11 +3
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop Workstation (v. 5 client) nspr-4.11.0-1.el5_11, nspr-devel-4.11.0-1.el5_11, nspr-devel-4.11.0-1.el5_11.i386 +5
- RHSA-2016:0685 Released 2016-04-25 · Red Hat rating Moderatenss, nspr, nss-softokn, and nss-util security, bug fix, and enhancement update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Client (v. 7) nspr-4.11.0-1.el7_2, nss-3.21.0-9.el7_2, nss-softokn-3.16.2.3-14.2.el7_2 +4
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Client Optional (v. 7) nspr-devel-4.11.0-1.el7_2, nss-devel-3.21.0-9.el7_2, nss-pkcs11-devel-3.21.0-9.el7_2 +3
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux ComputeNode (v. 7) nspr-4.11.0-1.el7_2, nss-3.21.0-9.el7_2, nss-softokn-3.16.2.3-14.2.el7_2 +4
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux ComputeNode Optional (v. 7) nspr-devel-4.11.0-1.el7_2, nss-devel-3.21.0-9.el7_2, nss-pkcs11-devel-3.21.0-9.el7_2 +3
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server (v. 7) nspr-4.11.0-1.el7_2, nspr-4.11.0-1.el7_2.ppc, nspr-devel-4.11.0-1.el7_2 +19
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server Optional (v. 7) nss-pkcs11-devel-3.21.0-9.el7_2, nss-pkcs11-devel-3.21.0-9.el7_2.ppc
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation (v. 7) nspr-4.11.0-1.el7_2, nspr-devel-4.11.0-1.el7_2, nss-3.21.0-9.el7_2 +9
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation Optional (v. 7) nss-pkcs11-devel-3.21.0-9.el7_2
- RHSA-2016:0591 Released 2016-04-05 · Red Hat rating Moderatenss, nss-util, and nspr security, bug fix, and enhancement update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop (v. 6) nspr-4.11.0-0.1.el6_7, nss-3.21.0-0.3.el6_7, nss-sysinit-3.21.0-0.3.el6_7 +2
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop Optional (v. 6) nspr-devel-4.11.0-0.1.el6_7, nss-devel-3.21.0-0.3.el6_7, nss-pkcs11-devel-3.21.0-0.3.el6_7 +1
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux HPC Node (v. 6) nspr-4.11.0-0.1.el6_7, nss-3.21.0-0.3.el6_7, nss-sysinit-3.21.0-0.3.el6_7 +2
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux HPC Node Optional (v. 6) nspr-devel-4.11.0-0.1.el6_7, nss-devel-3.21.0-0.3.el6_7, nss-pkcs11-devel-3.21.0-0.3.el6_7 +1
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server (v. 6) nspr-4.11.0-0.1.el6_7, nspr-4.11.0-0.1.el6_7.ppc, nspr-devel-4.11.0-0.1.el6_7 +11
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server Optional (v. 6) nss-pkcs11-devel-3.21.0-0.3.el6_7, nss-pkcs11-devel-3.21.0-0.3.el6_7.ppc
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation (v. 6) nspr-4.11.0-0.1.el6_7, nspr-devel-4.11.0-0.1.el6_7, nss-3.21.0-0.3.el6_7 +5
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation Optional (v. 6) nss-pkcs11-devel-3.21.0-0.3.el6_7
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux (v. 5 server) | Fixed | RHSA-2016:0684 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Client (v. 7) | Fixed | RHSA-2016:0685 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Client Optional (v. 7) | Fixed | RHSA-2016:0685 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux ComputeNode (v. 7) | Fixed | RHSA-2016:0685 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux ComputeNode Optional (v. 7) | Fixed | RHSA-2016:0685 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop (v. 5 client) | Fixed | RHSA-2016:0684 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop (v. 6) | Fixed | RHSA-2016:0591 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop Optional (v. 6) | Fixed | RHSA-2016:0591 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop Workstation (v. 5 client) | Fixed | RHSA-2016:0684 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux HPC Node (v. 6) | Fixed | RHSA-2016:0591 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux HPC Node Optional (v. 6) | Fixed | RHSA-2016:0591 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server (v. 6) | Fixed | RHSA-2016:0591 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server (v. 7) | Fixed | RHSA-2016:0685 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server Optional (v. 6) | Fixed | RHSA-2016:0591 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server Optional (v. 7) | Fixed | RHSA-2016:0685 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation (v. 6) | Fixed | RHSA-2016:0591 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation (v. 7) | Fixed | RHSA-2016:0685 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation Optional (v. 6) | Fixed | RHSA-2016:0591 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation Optional (v. 7) | Fixed | RHSA-2016:0685 |
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2016-1979
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-3v3j-hr3p-qv6j
References
Advisory 14
Other 7
- https://bto.bluecoat.com/security-advisory/sa124
- http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/topics/security/ovmbulletinjul2016-3090546.html
- https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1185033
- http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/topics/security/linuxbulletinapr2016-2952096.html
- https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Mozilla/Projects/NSS/NSS_3.21.1_release_notes
- http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/security-advisory/cpuoct2017-3236626.html
- http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/security-advisory/cpujul2017-3236622.html
More Mozilla Firefox vulnerabilities
- TI-2024-08981 Use after free in Mozilla Firefox KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2022-09832 Use after free in Mozilla Firefox KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.6
- TI-2019-08769 Improper input validation in Mozilla Firefox ESR KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 10.0
- TI-2010-03577 Mozilla Firefox 3.5.x through 3.5.14 and 3.6.x through 3.6.11, Thunderbird 3.1.6 before… KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2023-04799 Out-of-bounds write in Google Chrome KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
- TI-2023-04477 Out-of-bounds write in Google Chrome KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
Sources
- CVE-2016-1979 · CVE Program
- CVE-2016-1979 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-3v3j-hr3p-qv6j · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2016-1979 · 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