CVE-2016-8807 in Graphics Driver
Summary
by MITRE
For the NVIDIA Quadro, NVS, and GeForce products, NVIDIA Windows GPU Display Driver R340 before 342.00, R367 before 369.59, and R375 before 375.63 contains a vulnerability in the kernel mode layer (nvlddmkm.sys) handler for DxgDdiEscape ID 0x10000e9 where a value is passed from an user to the driver is used without validation as the size input to memcpy() causing a stack buffer overflow, leading to denial of service or potential escalation of privileges.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/09/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2016-8807 represents a critical stack buffer overflow condition within the NVIDIA Windows GPU Display Driver kernel mode layer. This flaw affects a wide range of NVIDIA graphics products including Quadro, NVS, and GeForce series, specifically impacting driver versions prior to the mentioned patches. The vulnerability resides in the nvlddmkm.sys component which serves as the kernel mode driver responsible for handling graphics operations and system interactions. The issue manifests through the DxgDdiEscape function with ID 0x10000e9, which processes escape commands from user-mode applications to communicate with the kernel driver. This particular escape command handler demonstrates a dangerous programming pattern where user-supplied data is directly used as input parameters to the memcpy() function without proper validation or sanitization. The lack of input validation creates a scenario where maliciously crafted data can overflow the intended buffer space, potentially corrupting adjacent memory locations and leading to unpredictable system behavior.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs when a user-mode application sends specially crafted escape commands to the graphics driver through the DxgDdiEscape interface. The driver's kernel mode handler receives these commands and processes them without validating the size parameter that determines how much data to copy. When the user provides an oversized size value, the memcpy() function attempts to copy more data than the allocated buffer can accommodate, resulting in a stack buffer overflow. This memory corruption can manifest in several ways depending on the specific conditions and memory layout. The most immediate impact is typically a system crash or denial of service, as the corrupted stack memory causes the driver to become unstable and terminate unexpectedly. However, the more concerning aspect is the potential for privilege escalation, as stack corruption in kernel mode can be exploited to execute arbitrary code with elevated privileges. This vulnerability directly maps to CWE-121, which describes stack-based buffer overflow conditions, and represents a classic example of unsafe memory handling in kernel mode drivers where user input directly influences memory operations.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple denial of service to potentially enable system compromise and privilege escalation attacks. Attackers who can successfully exploit this vulnerability gain the ability to execute code within the kernel context, which provides them with complete control over the affected system. The kernel mode execution context means that successful exploitation could allow attackers to bypass security restrictions, access protected memory areas, modify system files, or establish persistence mechanisms. This makes the vulnerability particularly dangerous in environments where users might run untrusted applications or where graphics drivers are frequently updated with potentially malicious software. The vulnerability affects systems running Windows operating systems with affected NVIDIA driver versions, creating a broad attack surface across enterprise and consumer environments. The fact that this vulnerability exists in graphics drivers also means that it could be exploited through various attack vectors including web browsers, multimedia applications, or any software that utilizes GPU acceleration features.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2016-8807 focus primarily on applying the vendor-provided security patches that address the root cause of the buffer overflow. NVIDIA released updated driver versions that include proper input validation for the DxgDdiEscape function, specifically ensuring that size parameters are validated before being used in memory operations. System administrators should prioritize patching affected systems and verify that the updated drivers are properly installed and functioning. Additional mitigations include implementing application whitelisting policies to restrict execution of potentially malicious applications that might attempt to exploit this vulnerability. The use of modern exploit protection mechanisms such as data execution prevention and address space layout randomization can provide additional defense in depth. From a security monitoring perspective, organizations should monitor for unusual driver behavior, system crashes, or unexpected kernel mode activity that might indicate exploitation attempts. The vulnerability also highlights the importance of secure coding practices in kernel mode components, emphasizing the need for input validation and bounds checking in all memory operations. This case study reinforces the critical nature of kernel mode security and demonstrates how seemingly minor input validation gaps can lead to severe privilege escalation vulnerabilities. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this type of vulnerability under privilege escalation techniques, specifically targeting the kernel mode execution environment where attackers can gain system-level control through buffer overflow exploits.