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6.5

Graphite2 font library can crash Firefox

CVE-2016-1523 · published 10 years ago
Summary

Firefox versions before 43.0 (and ESR 38.x before 38.6.1) use the Graphite2 library, which can mishandle a special smart font and cause the browser to crash. An attacker could send a crafted font that triggers a null pointer error, leading to a denial of service. Update Firefox to a version that includes the patched Graphite2 library or apply the library update from your Linux distribution.

What to do
  • Update debian graphite2 to version 1.3.5-1.
Affected software
Ecosystem VendorProductAffected versions
Debian:12 debian graphite2 < 1.3.5-1
Fix: upgrade to 1.3.5-1
Debian:13 debian graphite2 < 1.3.5-1
Fix: upgrade to 1.3.5-1
Debian:14 debian graphite2 < 1.3.5-1
Fix: upgrade to 1.3.5-1
– fedoraproject fedora 22
23
cpe:2.3:o:fedoraproject:fedora:22:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
– mozilla firefox 38.0
38.0.1
38.0.5
38.1.0
38.1.1
38.2.0
38.2.1
38.3.0
38.4.0
38.5.0
38.5.1
38.5.2
1 more version range
cpe:2.3:a:mozilla:firefox:38.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
– mozilla thunderbird <= 38.5.1
cpe:2.3:a:mozilla:thunderbird:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
– sil graphite2 1.2.4
cpe:2.3:a:sil:graphite2:1.2.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
– debian debian_linux 7.0
8.0
cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
Original advisory text
The SillMap::readFace function in FeatureMap.cpp in Libgraphite in Graphite 2 1.2.4, as used in Mozilla Firefox before 43.0 and Firefox ESR 38.x before 38.6.1, mishandles a return value, which allo...
The SillMap::readFace function in FeatureMap.cpp in Libgraphite in Graphite 2 1.2.4, as used in Mozilla Firefox before 43.0 and Firefox ESR 38.x before 38.6.1, mishandles a return value, which allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (missing initialization, NULL pointer dereference, and application crash) via a crafted Graphite smart font.
References
Severity
6.5 Medium
Exploitation
2% chance of attack within 30 days
Timeline
Published13 Feb 2016
Updated29 Oct 2026
First seen22 Sep 2026
Sources
DEBIAN-CVE-2016-1523 · OSV
CVE-2016-1523 · NVD
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