CVE-2016-3237

Exp

Kerberos in Microsoft Windows Vista SP2; Windows Server 2008 SP2 and R2 SP1; Windows 7 SP1; Windows 8.1; Windows Server 2012 Gold and R2; Windows RT 8.1; and Windows 10 Gold, 1511, and 1607 allows man-in-the-middle attackers to bypass authentication via vectors related to a fallback to NTLM authentication during a domain account password change, aka "Kerberos Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability."

Published: 2016-08-09 Last update: 2026-06-16 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]

Conclusion & alert: CVE-2016-3237 is rated High Exploit Risk (73.8/100): CVSS High severity, with high exploitation likelihood (EPSS 17.18%, 97th percentile). Core evidence: 2 public exploit reference(s) are indexed (Exploit-DB). Mandatory action: Public exploits are available—assess exposure, apply mitigations, and prioritize patching.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Public exploit references (Exploit-DB) for CVE-2016-3237

EDB-ID Source Kind Published Link
40409 exploit_db edb 2016-09-22 Exploit-DB ↗
nvd_ref exploit_tag Exploit-DB ↗

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2016-3237

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2026-06-15 24.93% 17.18% -7.75%
2 2025-10-31 13.12% 24.93% +11.82%
3 2025-09-14 13.12%

Full EPSS history (14 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2016-3237

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
7.5 3.0 HIGH
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:H)
Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work.
Privileges required (PR:L)
A normal user session is enough; they don’t have to be admin.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
1.6 5.9 [email protected]
6.8 2.0 MEDIUM
AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P Click to expand
Access vector (AV:N)
Can be exploited remotely over network reachability.
Access complexity (AC:M)
Exploitation needs some favorable conditions, but not exceptional ones.
Authentication (AU:N)
No authentication is required.
Confidentiality impact (C:P)
Partial confidentiality impact.
Integrity impact (I:P)
Partial integrity impact.
Availability impact (A:P)
Partial availability impact.
8.6 6.4 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2016-3237

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2016-3237

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
microsoft windows_10 cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_10 1511 cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_10:1511:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_7 cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_7:-:sp1:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_8.1 cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_8.1:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_rt cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_rt:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_rt_8.1 cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_rt_8.1:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_server_2008 cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2008:-:sp2:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_server_2008 r2 cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2008:r2:sp1:*:*:*:*:itanium:*
microsoft windows_server_2008 r2 cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2008:r2:sp1:*:*:*:*:x64:*
microsoft windows_server_2012 cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2012:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_server_2012 r2 cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_server_2012:r2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft windows_vista cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows_vista:-:sp2:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2016-3237

URL Tags
http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/92290 Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://www.securitytracker.com/id/1036576 Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/security-updates/securitybulletins/2016/ms16-101 Patch Vendor Advisory
https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/40409/ Exploit Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
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