HOMEVULNERABILITIESCVE-2016-1866
HIGH

CVE-2016-1866

CWE-284Published: April 12, 2016· Updated: Jun 17, 2026

8.1
CVSS v3.1

Official Description

Salt 2015.8.x before 2015.8.4 does not properly handle clear messages on the minion, which allows man-in-the-middle attackers to execute arbitrary code by inserting packets into the minion-master data stream.

NVD Source

Technical Analysis

CVE-2016-1866 can be exploited remotely over the network without requiring physical or adjacent access, significantly expanding the attack surface for threat actors.

The vulnerability requires no privileges and no user interaction, making it a prime target for automated exploitation campaigns and worm-like propagation.

A successful exploit results in complete confidentiality breach (data exposure), full integrity compromise (data manipulation), availability disruption (denial of service), with a CVSS base score of 8.1.

CVSS v3.1 Vector Breakdown

Exploitability
Attack VectorNetwork
Attack ComplexityHigh
Privileges Req.None
User InteractionNone
ScopeUnchanged
Impact
ConfidentialityHigh
IntegrityHigh
AvailabilityHigh
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Affected Vendors & Products

openSUSE1 product(s)
leap
saltstack1 product(s)
salt
Source: NVD CPE · 5 total CPE entries

Exploit & PoC Resources

NO KNOWN EXPLOITNo public exploit confirmed at this time
Exploit-DB
Offensive Security exploit database
GitHub PoC Search
Community PoC repositories
Rapid7 / Metasploit
Metasploit module search
PacketStorm
Security advisories & exploits
NVD Detail
Official NIST entry
MITRE CVE
CVE Program entry
External links open in a new tab. Always verify in a controlled environment before use.

Official Patches & Advisories

ADVISORYhttps://docs.saltstack.com/en/latest/topics/releases/2015.8.4.html
ADVISORYhttps://docs.saltstack.com/en/latest/topics/releases/2015.8.4.html

All References (4)

→
http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-updates/2016-03/msg00034.html
→
https://docs.saltstack.com/en/latest/topics/releases/2015.8.4.htmlVendor Advisory
→
http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-updates/2016-03/msg00034.html
→
https://docs.saltstack.com/en/latest/topics/releases/2015.8.4.htmlVendor Advisory

Quick Facts

CVE IDCVE-2016-1866
CVSS Score8.1 / 10
SeverityHIGH
WeaknessCWE-284
CISA KEVNo
Affected2 vendor(s)
PublishedApr 12, 2016

Related CVEs (CWE-284)

CVE-2016-1038
10.0
CVE-2016-1044
10.0
CVE-2014-6626
10.0
CVE-2015-5053
10.0
CVE-2016-1041
10.0
CVE-2016-8938
10.0

Recommended Actions

  • →Apply vendor patches immediately
  • →Monitor CVE-2016-1866 in threat intel feeds
  • →Review IDS/IPS signatures for exploitation attempts
Data sourced from NVD (NIST), CISA KEV, and EPSS (FIRST). Analysis generated by CTIWATCH.COM. CVE data is provided under the NVD usage policy.
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