CVE-2016-9080 in Firefox
Summary
by MITRE
Memory safety bugs were reported in Firefox 50.0.2. Some of these bugs showed evidence of memory corruption and we presume that with enough effort that some of these could be exploited to run arbitrary code. This vulnerability affects Firefox < 50.1.
If you want to get best quality of vulnerability data, you may have to visit VulDB.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/08/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2016-9080 represents a critical memory safety issue within the Mozilla Firefox web browser version 50.0.2 and earlier. This flaw falls under the category of memory corruption vulnerabilities that can potentially be leveraged by malicious actors to execute arbitrary code on affected systems. The vulnerability was discovered through comprehensive security testing and analysis of Firefox's memory management mechanisms, highlighting the inherent risks associated with complex browser architectures that handle vast amounts of dynamic memory allocation and deallocation during web page rendering and script execution.
These memory safety bugs manifest as weaknesses in Firefox's handling of memory operations, particularly in how the browser manages heap memory allocation and deallocation during normal browsing activities. The specific nature of these vulnerabilities suggests that improper memory handling could lead to buffer overflows, use-after-free conditions, or other memory corruption scenarios that allow attackers to manipulate memory contents in unintended ways. The presence of evidence indicating memory corruption patterns strongly suggests that these flaws could be exploited through carefully crafted malicious web content designed to trigger the vulnerable memory operations.
The operational impact of CVE-2016-9080 extends beyond simple browser instability, as successful exploitation could result in complete system compromise. Attackers leveraging these memory corruption vulnerabilities could potentially execute malicious code with the privileges of the browser process, leading to unauthorized access, data theft, or system control. The vulnerability affects all Firefox installations prior to version 50.1, making it particularly concerning as it would impact a significant portion of users who had not yet applied the necessary security patches. This type of vulnerability directly aligns with CWE-122 (Heap Overflow) and CWE-476 (NULL Pointer Dereference) categories, representing common memory safety issues in complex software systems.
The exploitation potential of this vulnerability is particularly concerning given that Firefox is a widely used browser with extensive web content processing capabilities. Attackers could craft malicious websites or phishing pages that, when loaded in vulnerable Firefox versions, would trigger the memory corruption conditions and execute attacker-controlled code. This scenario would typically involve techniques such as heap spraying, return-oriented programming, or other advanced exploitation methods that take advantage of the memory layout and corruption conditions. The vulnerability's classification aligns with ATT&CK techniques related to privilege escalation and code execution, as successful exploitation would likely result in elevated system privileges and persistent access to target systems.
Organizations and individuals should immediately update to Firefox version 50.1 or later to remediate this vulnerability, as the memory safety improvements implemented in this patch address the underlying memory handling issues. Additionally, implementing network-level protections such as web application firewalls and content filtering systems can provide additional defense-in-depth measures. Security teams should also monitor for indicators of compromise related to this vulnerability and ensure that browser updates are deployed across all affected systems in a timely manner to prevent exploitation attempts.