The Linux kernel before 4.5 allows local users to bypass file-descriptor limits and cause a denial of service (memory consumption) by leveraging incorrect tracking of descriptor ownership and sending each descriptor over a UNIX socket before closing it. NOTE: this vulnerability exists because of an incorrect fix for CVE-2013-4312.
CVE-2016-2550
Score 5.5 from GitHub Security Advisory published 2022-05-14. NVD baseline CVSS 5.5; sources differ by 0.0.
- Lower severity and no public exploit yet
A fix is available — apply it.
- CVSS v3
- 5.5
- EG Score
- 5.5(medium)
- EG Risk
- 29(Track)EG Risk 29/100SSVC: Track
EG Risk is EchelonGraph's 0–100 priority score: it fuses intrinsic severity with real-world exploitation and automatability so you can rank equal-severity CVEs and fix the most dangerous first. Higher = act sooner. Distinct from the 0–10 EG Score (severity).
How it’s computedSeverity55% × 45%Exploitation1% × 40%Automatability30% × 15%Action: Routine — remediate on your standard cadence. - EPSS PROB
- 1%
- EPSS %ILE
- 42%
- KEV
- Not listed
Published
April 27, 2016
Last Modified
June 17, 2026
References (28)
- security@debianhttp://git.kernel.org/cgit/linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git/commit/?id=415e3d3e90ce9e18727e8843ae343eda5a58fad6
- security@debianhttp://www.debian.org/security/2016/dsa-3503
- security@debianhttp://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2016/02/23/2
- security@debianhttp://www.oracle.com/technetwork/security-advisory/cpujan2018-3236628.html
- security@debianhttp://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-2946-1
- security@debianhttp://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-2946-2
- security@debianhttp://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-2947-1
- security@debianhttp://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-2947-2
- security@debianhttp://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-2947-3
- security@debianhttp://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-2948-1
- security@debianhttp://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-2948-2
- security@debianhttp://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-2949-1
- security@debianhttps://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1311517
- security@debianhttps://github.com/torvalds/linux/commit/415e3d3e90ce9e18727e8843ae343eda5a58fad6
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108http://git.kernel.org/cgit/linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git/commit/?id=415e3d3e90ce9e18727e8843ae343eda5a58fad6
Patch Availability(7)
| Vendor / Ecosystem | Fixed in / Patch | Released | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| ubuntu | linux-image-4.2.0-1028-raspi2 (4.2.0-1028.36) @ wily | 2026-05-22 | ubuntu |
| ubuntu | linux-image-4.2.0-35-powerpc64-smp (4.2.0-35.40) @ wily | 2026-05-22 | ubuntu |
| ubuntu | linux-image-extra-3.19.0-58-generic (3.19.0-58.64~14.04.1) @ trusty | 2026-05-22 | ubuntu |
| ubuntu | linux-image-extra-3.16.0-69-generic (3.16.0-69.89~14.04.1) @ trusty | 2026-05-22 | ubuntu |
| ubuntu | linux-image-extra-3.13.0-85-generic (3.13.0-85.129) @ trusty | 2026-05-22 | ubuntu |
| ubuntu | linux-image-3.13.0-85-generic-lpae (3.13.0-85.129~precise1) @ precise | 2026-05-22 | ubuntu |
| ubuntu | linux-image-extra-4.2.0-35-generic (4.2.0-35.40~14.04.1) @ trusty | 2026-05-22 | ubuntu |
Patches are aggregated from vendor advisories (Red Hat, Microsoft, Cisco, GitHub) and package ecosystems (OSV, GHSA). Multiple rows for the same upstream release have been deduplicated.
Affected Packages
(6 across 6 ecosystems)
Debian:11(1)
| Package | Vulnerable range | Fixed in | Dependents |
|---|---|---|---|
| linux | — | 4.4.4-1 | — |
Debian:12(1)
| Package | Vulnerable range | Fixed in | Dependents |
|---|---|---|---|
| linux | — | 4.4.4-1 | — |
Debian:13(1)
| Package | Vulnerable range | Fixed in | Dependents |
|---|---|---|---|
| linux | — | 4.4.4-1 | — |
Debian:14(1)
| Package | Vulnerable range | Fixed in | Dependents |
|---|---|---|---|
| linux | — | 4.4.4-1 | — |
Debian:7(1)
| Package | Vulnerable range | Fixed in | Dependents |
|---|---|---|---|
| linux | 3.2.41-2 ... 3.2.73-2+deb7u2~bpo60+1 (56 versions) | 3.2.73-2+deb7u3 | — |
Debian:8(1)
| Package | Vulnerable range | Fixed in | Dependents |
|---|---|---|---|
| linux | 3.16.7-ckt11-1 ... 3.16.7-ckt9-3~deb8u1~bpo70+1 (24 versions) | 3.16.7-ckt20-1+deb8u4 | — |
Weakness Classification(1)
MITRE Common Weakness Enumeration — the root-cause categories this CVE belongs to.
All Vendor Advisories
(7)
Every vendor that published an advisory referencing this CVE — pulled from our cve_vendor_advisories aggregation. Click any row for the vendor's original advisory page.
- UbuntuUSN-2946-1MEDIUM
Linux kernel vulnerabilities
- UbuntuUSN-2946-2MEDIUM
Linux kernel (Trusty HWE) vulnerabilities
- UbuntuUSN-2947-1MEDIUM
Linux kernel vulnerabilities
- UbuntuUSN-2947-2MEDIUM
Linux kernel (Wily HWE) vulnerabilities
- UbuntuUSN-2947-3MEDIUM
Linux kernel (Raspberry Pi 2) vulnerabilities
- UbuntuUSN-2948-1MEDIUM
Linux kernel (Utopic HWE) vulnerabilities
- UbuntuUSN-2949-1MEDIUM
Linux kernel (Vivid HWE) vulnerabilities
Data Freshness Timeline
(refreshed 6× in last 7d / 18× in last 30d)
Each row is a source pipeline that fetched or updated this CVE on that date, with what changed. For example, "NVD update" means NVD published or revised its analysis for this CVE; "MITRE cvelistV5" means we ingested or refreshed it from the CNA feed. Most recent first.
Showing the most recent 100 of 145 total refreshes for this CVE.
- 2026-09-19 01:00 UTCOSV refresh
- 2026-09-18 19:22 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-09-17 19:21 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-09-15 03:05 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-09-13 16:41 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-09-12 14:55 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-09-10 09:26 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-09-07 15:56 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-09-04 13:56 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-09-02 14:07 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-09-01 03:31 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-31 04:26 UTCOSV refresh
- 2026-08-30 19:12 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-27 14:20 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-26 14:41 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-25 13:44 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-23 00:13 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-21 23:44 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-19 16:59 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-18 13:43 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-17 13:42 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-16 14:51 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-16 02:09 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-15 01:25 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-14 12:24 UTCOSV refresh
Show 75 moreShow fewer
- 2026-08-12 13:46 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-11 13:36 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-09 13:42 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-08 16:32 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-06 13:42 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-05 19:12 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-04 15:04 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-04 10:32 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-02 02:22 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-01 04:11 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-30 16:23 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-30 01:26 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-30 00:37 UTCOSV refresh
- 2026-07-28 15:31 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-26 14:50 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-25 14:13 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-23 14:14 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-23 01:22 UTCEG score recompute
- 2026-07-22 22:02 UTCEG score recompute
- 2026-07-22 14:04 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-21 15:21 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-21 15:21 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-20 17:03 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-19 14:27 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-19 02:26 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-19 02:26 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-18 10:00 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-18 10:00 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-16 16:59 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-16 16:59 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-15 16:54 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-15 16:54 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-15 01:56 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-15 01:56 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-13 22:26 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-13 06:09 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-12 10:08 UTCOSV refresh
- 2026-07-12 05:43 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-12 05:43 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-11 08:23 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-09 19:05 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-08 15:10 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-07 13:42 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-06 16:24 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-06 16:24 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-06 02:20 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-06 02:20 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-05 02:27 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-04 06:28 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-01 15:02 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-30 23:19 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-29 14:03 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-28 14:04 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-28 04:53 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-27 03:05 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-27 03:05 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-25 13:47 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-25 13:47 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-24 14:02 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-24 14:02 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-23 21:30 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-23 15:50 UTCOSV refresh
- 2026-06-22 14:23 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-21 14:54 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-21 14:54 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-21 01:57 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-21 01:57 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-19 19:23 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-19 19:23 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-18 17:50 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-17 17:50 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-17 17:50 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-16 17:50 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-16 17:50 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-15 17:45 UTCEPSS rescore
Related CVEs(same vendor + same CWE)
Same vendor
10 shownubuntu
- CVE-2004-0989EG 10.0EPSS p98HIGH
- CVE-2004-0990EG 10.0EPSS p98HIGH
- CVE-2004-1010EG 10.0EPSS p95HIGH
- CVE-2004-0941EG 10.0EPSS p96HIGH
- CVE-2004-0981EG 10.0EPSS p93HIGH
- CVE-2004-0882EG 10.0EPSS p96HIGH
- CVE-2004-0888EG 10.0EPSS p95HIGH
- CVE-2004-1012EG 10.0EPSS p93HIGH
- CVE-2004-1013EG 10.0EPSS p93HIGH
- CVE-2004-1018EG 10.0EPSS p97HIGH
Same CWE
10 shownCWE-399
- CVE-2016-10390EG 9.8CRITICAL
- CVE-2015-1832EG 9.1EPSS p96CRITICAL
- CVE-2010-0806NVD 8.8EG 9.0 KEVEPSS p100CRITICAL
- CVE-2016-10153EG 7.8HIGH
- CVE-2012-6435NVD 7.5EG 7.8EPSS p98HIGH
- CVE-2003-1448EG 7.8EPSS p97HIGH
- CVE-2002-2306EG 7.8HIGH
- CVE-2002-2309EG 7.8EPSS p90HIGH
- CVE-2001-0041EG 7.8EPSS p96HIGH
- CVE-2000-0305EG 7.8EPSS p98HIGH
Frequently asked(5)
What is CVE-2016-2550?
When was CVE-2016-2550 disclosed?
Is CVE-2016-2550 actively exploited?
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2016-2550?
How do I remediate CVE-2016-2550?
Dependency Blast Radius
See which npm, PyPI, Go, and Maven packages are affected by CVE-2016-2550
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