Race condition in net/packet/af_packet.c in the Linux kernel through 4.8.12 allows local users to gain privileges or cause a denial of service (use-after-free) by leveraging the CAP_NET_RAW capability to change a socket version, related to the packet_set_ring and packet_setsockopt functions.
CVE-2016-8655
Score 7.8 from GitHub Security Advisory (severity: HIGH) published 2022-05-14. NVD baseline CVSS 7.8; sources differ by 0.0.
- Public exploit code is available (Metasploit, Exploit-DB (verified), epss top5pct, public exploit)
A fix is available — apply it.
- CVSS v3
- 7.8
- EG Score
- 7.8(medium)
- EG Risk
- 66(Track)EG Risk 66/100SSVC: 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 computedSeverity78% × 45%Exploitation65% × 40%Automatability30% × 15%Action: Routine — remediate on your standard cadence. - EPSS PROB
- 11%
- EPSS %ILE
- 96%
- KEV
- Not listed
Published
December 8, 2016
Last Modified
June 17, 2026
References (68)
- secalert@redhathttp://git.kernel.org/cgit/linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git/commit/?id=84ac7260236a49c79eede91617700174c2c19b0c
- secalert@redhathttp://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2016-12/msg00044.html
- secalert@redhathttp://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2016-12/msg00054.html
- secalert@redhathttp://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2016-12/msg00055.html
- secalert@redhathttp://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2016-12/msg00056.html
- secalert@redhathttp://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2016-12/msg00067.html
- secalert@redhathttp://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2016-12/msg00070.html
- secalert@redhathttp://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2016-12/msg00073.html
- secalert@redhathttp://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2016-12/msg00076.html
- secalert@redhathttp://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2016-12/msg00077.html
- secalert@redhathttp://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2016-12/msg00087.html
- secalert@redhathttp://packetstormsecurity.com/files/140063/Linux-Kernel-4.4.0-AF_PACKET-Race-Condition-Privilege-Escalation.html
- secalert@redhathttp://rhn.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2017-0386.html
- secalert@redhathttp://rhn.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2017-0387.html
- secalert@redhathttp://rhn.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2017-0402.html
Patch Availability(13)
| Vendor / Ecosystem | Fixed in / Patch | Released | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| ubuntu | linux-image-extra-4.4.0-53-generic (4.4.0-53.74) @ xenial | 2026-05-22 | ubuntu |
| ubuntu | linux-image-omap (3.2.0.118.133) @ precise | 2026-05-22 | ubuntu |
| ubuntu | linux-image-4.4.0-1034-raspi2 (4.4.0-1034.41) @ xenial | 2026-05-22 | ubuntu |
| ubuntu | linux-image-4.4.0-1039-snapdragon (4.4.0-1039.43) @ xenial | 2026-05-22 | ubuntu |
| ubuntu | linux-image-extra-4.4.0-53-generic (4.4.0-53.74~14.04.1) @ trusty | 2026-05-22 | ubuntu |
| ubuntu | linux-image-3.13.0-105-generic-lpae (3.13.0-105.152~precise1) @ precise | 2026-05-22 | ubuntu |
| ubuntu | linux-image-extra-3.13.0-105-generic (3.13.0-105.152) @ trusty | 2026-05-22 | ubuntu |
| ubuntu | linux-image-raspi2 (4.8.0.1020.23) @ yakkety | 2026-05-22 | ubuntu |
| ubuntu | linux-image-4.8.0-30-powerpc64-emb (4.8.0-30.32) @ yakkety | 2026-05-22 | ubuntu |
| ubuntu | linux-image-omap4 (3.2.0.1496.91) @ precise | 2026-05-22 | ubuntu |
| redhat | kernel-rt-1:3.10.0-514.rt56.215.el6rt | 2017-03-02 | redhat |
| redhat | kernel-rt-0:3.10.0-514.10.2.rt56.435.el7 | 2017-03-02 | redhat |
| redhat | kernel-0:3.10.0-514.10.2.el7 | 2017-03-02 | redhat |
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
(5 across 5 ecosystems)
Debian:11(1)
| Package | Vulnerable range | Fixed in | Dependents |
|---|---|---|---|
| linux | — | 4.8.15-1 | — |
Debian:12(1)
| Package | Vulnerable range | Fixed in | Dependents |
|---|---|---|---|
| linux | — | 4.8.15-1 | — |
Debian:13(1)
| Package | Vulnerable range | Fixed in | Dependents |
|---|---|---|---|
| linux | — | 4.8.15-1 | — |
Debian:14(1)
| Package | Vulnerable range | Fixed in | Dependents |
|---|---|---|---|
| linux | — | 4.8.15-1 | — |
Debian:7(1)
| Package | Vulnerable range | Fixed in | Dependents |
|---|---|---|---|
| linux | 3.2.41-2 ... 3.2.82-1 (61 versions) | 3.2.84-1 | — |
Weakness Classification(2)
MITRE Common Weakness Enumeration — the root-cause categories this CVE belongs to.
All Vendor Advisories
(13)
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.
- Red HatRHSA-2017:0386IMPORTANT2016-12-06
RHSA-2017:0386 — Important
- Red HatRHSA-2017:0387IMPORTANT2016-12-06
RHSA-2017:0387 — Important
- Red HatRHSA-2017:0402IMPORTANT2016-12-06
RHSA-2017:0402 — Important
- UbuntuUSN-3149-1HIGH
Linux kernel vulnerability
- UbuntuUSN-3149-2HIGH
Linux kernel (Trusty HWE) vulnerability
- UbuntuUSN-3150-1HIGH
Linux kernel vulnerability
- UbuntuUSN-3150-2HIGH
Linux kernel (OMAP4) vulnerability
- UbuntuUSN-3151-1HIGH
Linux kernel vulnerability
- UbuntuUSN-3151-2HIGH
Linux kernel (Xenial HWE) vulnerability
- UbuntuUSN-3151-3HIGH
Linux kernel (Qualcomm Snapdragon) vulnerability
- UbuntuUSN-3151-4HIGH
Linux kernel (Raspberry Pi 2) vulnerability
- UbuntuUSN-3152-1HIGH
Linux kernel vulnerability
- UbuntuUSN-3152-2HIGH
Linux kernel (Raspberry Pi 2) vulnerability
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 139 total refreshes for this CVE.
- 2026-09-19 15:35 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-09-18 19:22 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-09-18 18:20 UTCOSV refresh
- 2026-09-17 19:22 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-09-16 05:05 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-09-15 03:05 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-09-12 14:55 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-09-11 14:46 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-09-11 09:31 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 13:48 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-09-01 03:31 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-30 21:34 UTCOSV refresh
- 2026-08-28 21:35 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-27 14:20 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-26 14:41 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-25 13:44 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-21 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
Show 75 moreShow fewer
- 2026-08-16 02:10 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-15 01:25 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-14 08:16 UTCOSV refresh
- 2026-08-12 13:46 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-11 13:36 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-08 16:32 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-07 16:22 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-06 13:42 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-05 19:12 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-04 15:05 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-02 02:22 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-08-01 04:11 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-30 16:24 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-30 01:26 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-30 01:26 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-29 16:07 UTCOSV refresh
- 2026-07-28 15:31 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-25 14:13 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-24 14:13 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-23 14:15 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-23 01:24 UTCEG score recompute
- 2026-07-22 22:03 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 17:04 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-19 14:28 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-19 14:28 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
- 2026-07-13 22:26 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-12 05:43 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-12 05:43 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-12 05:39 UTCOSV refresh
- 2026-07-11 08:24 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-09 19:06 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
- 2026-06-30 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
- 2026-06-25 13:47 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-24 14:02 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-23 21:30 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-23 11:58 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
- 2026-06-18 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
- 2026-06-15 17:45 UTCEPSS rescore
Publicly available exploits
(6 references)Working exploit code is in the public domain (1 Metasploit module) (2 GitHub PoCs) (3 Exploit-DB entries). Defenders should treat patch urgency accordingly — public PoCs typically lead to mass-exploitation within 24-72 hours.
- Exploit-DBEDB-47170First seen Dec 29, 2018
Linux Kernel 4.4.0-21 < 4.4.0-51 (Ubuntu 14.04/16.04 x64) - 'AF_PACKET' Race Condition Privilege Escalation
Open source ↗ - Exploit-DBEDB-44696✓ verifiedFirst seen May 22, 2018
Linux 4.4.0 < 4.4.0-53 - 'AF_PACKET chocobo_root' Local Privilege Escalation (Metasploit)
Open source ↗ - GitHub PoCmartinmullins/CVE-2016-8655_AndroidFirst seen Dec 17, 2016
Android attempt at PoC CVE-2016-8655
Open source ↗ - Open source ↗GitHub PoCLakshmiDesai/CVE-2016-8655First seen Dec 8, 2016
- Exploit-DBEDB-40871✓ verifiedFirst seen Dec 6, 2016
Linux Kernel 4.4.0 (Ubuntu 14.04/16.04 x86-64) - 'AF_PACKET' Race Condition Privilege Escalation
Open source ↗ - Metasploitexploit/linux/local/af_packet_chocobo_root_priv_esc✓ verifiedFirst seen Aug 12, 2016
AF_PACKET chocobo_root Privilege Escalation
Open source ↗
Related CVEs(same vendor + same CWE)
Same vendor
10 shownredhat
- CVE-2001-0825EG 10.0HIGH
- CVE-2001-1009EG 10.0EPSS p93HIGH
- CVE-2001-0554EG 10.0EPSS p99HIGH
- CVE-2001-1162EG 10.0EPSS p96HIGH
- CVE-2001-0414EG 10.0EPSS p100HIGH
- CVE-2001-0191EG 10.0EPSS p92HIGH
- CVE-2001-0301EG 10.0EPSS p91HIGH
- CVE-2001-0197EG 10.0EPSS p96HIGH
- CVE-2001-0233EG 10.0EPSS p96HIGH
- CVE-2001-0010EG 10.0EPSS p98HIGH
Same CWE
10 shownCWE-362 · CWE-416
Frequently asked(5)
What is CVE-2016-8655?
When was CVE-2016-8655 disclosed?
Is CVE-2016-8655 actively exploited?
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2016-8655?
How do I remediate CVE-2016-8655?
Dependency Blast Radius
See which npm, PyPI, Go, and Maven packages are affected by CVE-2016-8655
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