The overflow protection in Expat is removed by compilers with certain optimization settings, which allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (crash) or possibly execute arbitrary code via crafted XML data. NOTE: this vulnerability exists because of an incomplete fix for CVE-2015-1283 and CVE-2015-2716.
This vulnerability carries a HIGH severity rating with a CVSS v3.1 score of 8.1, indicating it can be exploited remotely over the network but requires specific conditions to be met without requiring user interaction and does not require pre-existing privileges . The vulnerability impacts confidentiality (data exposure), integrity (unauthorized modifications), and availability (service disruption) for affected systems. Impacting 4 products from libexpat_project, from canonical, from mcafee and 1 other, organizations running these solutions should prioritize assessment and patching.
First disclosed in 2016, this vulnerability was reported during a period defined by widespread IoT adoption challenges, mobile security concerns, and the emergence of advanced persistent threat (APT) techniques. Contemporary mitigation strategies focused on secure development practices and third-party component vetting.
2016-06-30T17:59:04.000
2025-04-12T10:46:40.837
Deferred
CVSSv3.1: 8.1 (HIGH)
AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P
8.6
6.4
| Type | Vendor | Product | Version/Range | Vulnerable? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Application | libexpat_project | libexpat | ≤ 2.1.1 | Yes |
| Operating System | canonical | ubuntu_linux | 12.04 | Yes |
| Application | mcafee | policy_auditor | < 6.5.1 | Yes |
| Application | python | python | < 2.7.15 | Yes |
| Application | python | python | < 3.3.7 | Yes |
| Application | python | python | < 3.4.7 | Yes |
| Application | python | python | < 3.5.4 | Yes |
| Application | python | python | < 3.6.2 | Yes |
SecUtils normalizes and enriches National Vulnerability Database (NVD) records by standardizing vendor and product identifiers, aggregating vulnerability metadata from both NVD and MITRE sources, and providing structured context for security teams. For libexpat_project's affected products, we extract Common Platform Enumeration (CPE) data, Common Weakness Enumeration (CWE) classifications, CVSS severity metrics, and reference data to enable rapid vulnerability prioritization and asset correlation. This record contains no exploit code, proof-of-concept instructions, or attack methodologies—only defensive intelligence necessary for patch management, risk assessment, and security operations.