CVE-2016-7459

VMware vCenter Server 5.5 before U3e and 6.0 before U2a allows remote authenticated users to read arbitrary files via a (1) Log Browser, (2) Distributed Switch setup, or (3) Content Library XML document containing an external entity declaration in conjunction with an entity reference, related to an XML External Entity (XXE) issue.

Published: 2016-12-29 Last update: 2026-05-06 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Modified，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2016-7459 is rated Moderate Risk (53.2/100): CVSS High severity, with medium exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.55%). 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-2016-7459

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 2025-03-30 1.01% 0.55% -0.46%
2 2025-03-29 0.55% 1.01% +0.46%
3 2025-03-17 — 0.55% —

Full EPSS history (5 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2016-7459

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
7.7 3.0 HIGH
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:N 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: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:C)
Breaking this can reach past the original component and bite other resources—bigger blast radius.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:N)
Data isn’t meaningfully altered or forged.
Availability (A:N)
Service keeps running; no real outage angle.
 3.1 4.0 [email protected]
4.0 2.0 MEDIUM
AV:N/AC:L/Au:S/C:P/I:N/A:N Click to expand
Access vector (AV:N)
Can be exploited remotely over network reachability.
Access complexity (AC:L)
Exploitation conditions are straightforward and predictable.
Authentication (AU:S)
A single authentication is required.
Confidentiality impact (C:P)
Partial confidentiality impact.
Integrity impact (I:N)
No integrity impact.
Availability impact (A:N)
No availability impact.
 8.0 2.9 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2016-7459

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2016-7459

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
vmware vcenter_server 5.0 cpe:2.3:a:vmware:vcenter_server:5.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
vmware vcenter_server 5.5 cpe:2.3:a:vmware:vcenter_server:5.5:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
vmware vcenter_server 5.5 cpe:2.3:a:vmware:vcenter_server:5.5:1:*:*:*:*:*:*
vmware vcenter_server 5.5 cpe:2.3:a:vmware:vcenter_server:5.5:2:*:*:*:*:*:*
vmware vcenter_server 5.5 cpe:2.3:a:vmware:vcenter_server:5.5:3a:*:*:*:*:*:*
vmware vcenter_server 5.5 cpe:2.3:a:vmware:vcenter_server:5.5:3b:*:*:*:*:*:*
vmware vcenter_server 6.0 cpe:2.3:a:vmware:vcenter_server:6.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
vmware vcenter_server 6.0 cpe:2.3:a:vmware:vcenter_server:6.0:1:*:*:*:*:*:*
vmware vcenter_server 6.0 cpe:2.3:a:vmware:vcenter_server:6.0:1b:*:*:*:*:*:*
vmware vcenter_server 6.0 cpe:2.3:a:vmware:vcenter_server:6.0:2:*:*:*:*:*:*
vmware vcenter_server 6.0 cpe:2.3:a:vmware:vcenter_server:6.0:2m:*:*:*:*:*:*
vmware vcenter_server 6.0 cpe:2.3:a:vmware:vcenter_server:6.0:a:*:*:*:*:*:*
vmware vcenter_server 6.0 cpe:2.3:a:vmware:vcenter_server:6.0:b:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2016-7459

cvelogic Threat Intelligence