CVE-2016-3697

libcontainer/user/user.go in runC before 0.1.0, as used in Docker before 1.11.2, improperly treats a numeric UID as a potential username, which allows local users to gain privileges via a numeric username in the password file in a container.

Published: 2016-06-01 Last update: 2026-06-16 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Modified，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2016-3697 is rated Moderate Risk (42.1/100): CVSS High severity, with low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.39%). Review affected assets and schedule remediation.

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

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2016-3697

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 0.10% 0.39% +0.29%
2 2025-03-30 0.17% 0.10% -0.07%
3 2025-03-29 — 0.17% —

Full EPSS history (8 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2016-3697

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
7.8 3.1 HIGH
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:L)
They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
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.
 1.8 5.9 [email protected]
2.1 2.0 LOW
AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:N/A:N Click to expand
Access vector (AV:L)
Requires local access to the target system.
Access complexity (AC:L)
Exploitation conditions are straightforward and predictable.
Authentication (AU:N)
No authentication is required.
Confidentiality impact (C:P)
Partial confidentiality impact.
Integrity impact (I:N)
No integrity impact.
Availability impact (A:N)
No availability impact.
 3.9 2.9 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2016-3697

GitHub Security Advisory for CVE-2016-3697

OS Trackers for CVE-2016-3697

vendor priority summary link
debian unimportant CVE-2016-3697 unimportant priority: Debian including 2 source packages (docker.io, runc), 10 status rows across 5 suites (bookworm, bullseye, forky, sid, trixie): resolved 10. https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2016-3697
gentoo normal CVE-2016-3697: 1 GLSA(s) (201612-28), 1 atom(s) (app-emulation/docker); latest impact normal. https://bugs.gentoo.org/buglist.cgi?quicksearch=CVE-2016-3697
redhat medium — https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2016-3697
suse medium — https://www.suse.com/security/cve/CVE-2016-3697/
ubuntu medium CVE-2016-3697 medium priority: Ubuntu including 2 source packages (docker.io, runc), 14 status rows across 7 suites (precise, trusty, upstream, wily, xenial, yakkety, zesty): DNE 5, ignored 3, not-affected 3, released 2, needs-triage 1. https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2016-3697

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2016-3697

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
docker docker <= 1.11.1 cpe:2.3:a:docker:docker:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linuxfoundation runc <= 0.0.9 cpe:2.3:a:linuxfoundation:runc:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
opensuse opensuse 13.2 cpe:2.3:o:opensuse:opensuse:13.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2016-3697

cvelogic Threat Intelligence