CVE-2016-8820

All versions of NVIDIA Windows GPU Display Driver contain a vulnerability in the kernel mode layer (nvlddmkm.sys) handler for DxgDdiEscape where a check on a function return value is missing, potentially allowing an uninitialized value to be used as the source of a strcpy() call, leading to denial of service or information disclosure.

Published: 2016-12-16 Last update: 2026-05-06 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]

Conclusion & alert: CVE-2016-8820 is rated Low Risk (27.2/100): CVSS Medium severity, with low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.04%). Mandatory action: Monitor for updates and reassess as exploit intelligence or EPSS changes.

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-2016-8820

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 2023-03-07 0.89% 0.04% -0.84%
2 2022-02-04 0.89%

Full EPSS history (2 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2016-8820

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
6.1 3.0 MEDIUM
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/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:L)
Some sensitive info could get out, but not a total data dump.
Integrity (I:N)
Data isn’t meaningfully altered or forged.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
1.8 4.2 [email protected]
5.6 2.0 MEDIUM
AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:N/A:C 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:C)
Complete availability impact.
3.9 7.8 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2016-8820

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2016-8820

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
nvidia gpu_driver cpe:2.3:a:nvidia:gpu_driver:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2016-8820

cvelogic Threat Intelligence