The BPF subsystem in the Linux kernel before 4.5.5 mishandles reference counts, which allows local users to cause a denial of service (use-after-free) or possibly have unspecified other impact via a crafted application on (1) a system with more than 32 Gb of memory, related to the program reference count or (2) a 1 Tb system, related to the map reference count.
CVE-2016-4558
Score 7.0 from GitHub Security Advisory (severity: HIGH) published 2022-05-17. NVD baseline CVSS 7.0; sources differ by 0.0.
- Public exploit code is available (Exploit-DB (verified), public exploit)
A fix is available — apply it.
- CVSS v3
- 7.0
- EG Score
- 7.0HIGHmedium confidence
- EG Risk
- 62EG Risk 62/100CISA SSVC
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 computedSeverity70% × 45%Exploitation65% × 40%Automatability30% × 15%CISA SSVC: Track at low or medium mission impact; Track* or Attend at high (mission-essential systems).Action: A fix is available. Apply it within your standard update timelines at low or medium mission impact and sooner than that at high. - EPSS PROB
- 0.9%
- EPSS %ILE
- 57th
- KEV
- Not listed
CISA SSVCTrack at low or medium mission impact; Track* or Attend at high (mission-essential systems).
A fix is available. Apply it within your standard update timelines at low or medium mission impact and sooner than that at high.
Exploitation public PoC (EG-KEV: weaponized) · Automatable unknown (not published for this CVE) · Technical impact partial (CVSS below 9.0). Mission impact is CISA's Mission & Well-being decision point, and only you can judge it: high means the affected system is essential to your organisation's mission, or its compromise could cause irreversible harm to people. CISA's decision table
Published
May 23, 2016
Last Modified
June 17, 2026
References (16)
- cve@mitrehttp://git.kernel.org/cgit/linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git/commit/?id=92117d8443bc5afacc8d5ba82e541946310f106e
- cve@mitrehttp://www.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v4.x/ChangeLog-4.5.5
- cve@mitrehttp://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2016/05/06/4
- cve@mitrehttp://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-3005-1
- cve@mitrehttp://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-3006-1
- cve@mitrehttp://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-3007-1
- cve@mitrehttps://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1334303
- cve@mitrehttps://github.com/torvalds/linux/commit/92117d8443bc5afacc8d5ba82e541946310f106e
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108http://git.kernel.org/cgit/linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git/commit/?id=92117d8443bc5afacc8d5ba82e541946310f106e
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108http://www.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v4.x/ChangeLog-4.5.5
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2016/05/06/4
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108http://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-3005-1
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108http://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-3006-1
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108http://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-3007-1
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1334303
Patch Availability(3)
| Vendor / Ecosystem | Fix (by version range) / Patch | Released | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| ubuntu | linux-image-extra-4.4.0-24-generic (4.4.0-24.43~14.04.1) @ trusty | 2026-05-22 | ubuntu |
| ubuntu | linux-image-4.4.0-1012-raspi2 (4.4.0-1012.16) @ xenial | 2026-05-22 | ubuntu |
| ubuntu | linux-image-extra-4.4.0-24-generic (4.4.0-24.43) @ xenial | 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
(4 across 4 ecosystems)
Debian:11(1)
| Package | Vulnerable range | Fix by version range | Dependents |
|---|---|---|---|
| linux | — |
| — |
Debian:12(1)
| Package | Vulnerable range | Fix by version range | Dependents |
|---|---|---|---|
| linux | — |
| — |
Debian:13(1)
| Package | Vulnerable range | Fix by version range | Dependents |
|---|---|---|---|
| linux | — |
| — |
Debian:14(1)
| Package | Vulnerable range | Fix by version range | Dependents |
|---|---|---|---|
| linux | — |
| — |
All Vendor Advisories
(3)
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.
Data Freshness Timeline
(refreshed 6× in last 7d / 21× 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 159 total refreshes for this CVE.
- 2026-10-05 17:38 UTCEPSS rescore
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- 2026-09-30 09:13 UTCEG score recompute
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- 2026-09-19 00:30 UTCOSV refresh
- 2026-09-18 19:22 UTCEPSS rescore
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- 2026-08-31 04:08 UTCOSV refresh
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- 2026-08-30 19:12 UTCEPSS rescore
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- 2026-07-30 00:07 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 01:23 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
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- 2026-07-13 22:26 UTCEPSS rescore
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- 2026-07-12 10:07 UTCOSV refresh
- 2026-07-12 05:43 UTCEPSS rescore
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- 2026-07-11 08:23 UTCEPSS rescore
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- 2026-06-23 21:30 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-23 15:20 UTCOSV refresh
Publicly available exploits
(1 reference)Working exploit code is in the public domain (1 Exploit-DB entry). Defenders should treat patch urgency accordingly — public PoCs typically lead to mass-exploitation within 24-72 hours.
- Exploit-DBEDB-39773✓ verifiedFirst seen May 4, 2016
Linux Kernel (Ubuntu 16.04) - Reference Count Overflow Using BPF Maps
Open source ↗
Related CVEs(same vendor)
Frequently asked(5)
What is CVE-2016-4558?
When was CVE-2016-4558 disclosed?
Is CVE-2016-4558 actively exploited?
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2016-4558?
How do I remediate CVE-2016-4558?
Dependency Blast Radius
See which npm, PyPI, Go, and Maven packages are affected by CVE-2016-4558
Is Your Infrastructure Affected by CVE-2016-4558?
EchelonGraph automatically scans your cloud infrastructure and maps CVE exposure using blast radius analysis.