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CVE-2016-6981

30
FAUCET Score

CVE-2016-6981 is a critical use-after-free vulnerability in Adobe Flash Player versions prior to 18.0.0.382 and 23.0.0.185 on Windows/OS X, and 11.2.202.637 on Linux, allowing for arbitrary code execution. With a CVSS score of 8.8 (High), this vulnerability is easily exploitable over a network with low attack complexity, potentially leading to complete compromise of confidentiality, integrity, and availability. While no public exploit code or active exploitation is reported, it has garnered some community discussion and media coverage, indicating awareness of its potential impact.

Impacted Technologies

VendorProductVersion(s)CPE
<= 23.0.0.162CPE matchmatch criteria
cpe:2.3:a:adobe:flash_player:*:*:*:*:*:chrome:*:*
<= 23.0.0.162CPE matchmatch criteria
cpe:2.3:a:adobe:flash_player:*:*:*:*:*:edge:*:*
<= 23.0.0.162CPE matchmatch criteria
cpe:2.3:a:adobe:flash_player:*:*:*:*:*:internet_explorer:*:*
<= 18.0.0.375CPE matchmatch criteria
cpe:2.3:a:adobe:flash_player:*:*:*:*:esr:*:*:*
<= 23.0.0.162CPE matchmatch criteria
cpe:2.3:a:adobe:flash_player_desktop_runtime:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

CVSS Data

CVSS version used by this source: 3.1

8.8HIGH

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Attack Vector
NETWORK
Attack Complexity
LOW
Privileges Required
NONE
User Interaction
REQUIRED
Scope
UNCHANGED
Confidentiality Impact
HIGH
Integrity Impact
HIGH
Availability Impact
HIGH
Exploitability Score
2.8
Impact Score
5.9
CvssVersion
3.1

Exploit Intelligence

EPSS Score
5.43%
Probability of exploitation in next 30 days
EPSS Percentile
91.9%
Percentile rank of EPSS score among Peer Group
As of 2026-07-24
Model: v2026.06.15
This CVE's current EPSS score of 0.0543 is in the 92nd percentile among its peer group of 14,824 CVEs.

Social Chatter

The average CVE in this peer group has 0.0 Twitter, 0.1 Reddit, 0.2 Bluesky, 0.1 Mastodon, and 0.2 GitHub mentions.

Media Mentions

The average CVE in this peer group has 0.3 InfoSec Media, 0.0 Vendor Blog, and 0.1 Security Researcher mentions.

Remediation

Patch Available

Vendor Patches (3)

adobepatch availablevia nvd_reference
View patch
redhatpatch availablevia redhat_api
Product: Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 SupplementaryFixed in: flash-plugin-0:11.2.202.637-1.el5_11
View patch
redhatpatch availablevia redhat_api
Product: Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 SupplementaryFixed in: flash-plugin-0:11.2.202.637-1.el6_8
View patch

Vendor Advisories (1)

redhatCVE-2016-6981Critical

flash-plugin: multiple code execution issues fixed in APSB16-32

Oct 11, 2016

References

rhn.redhat.com / errata/RHSA-2016-2057.html
Third Party Advisory
helpx.adobe.com / security/products/flash-player/apsb16-32.html
PatchVendor Advisory
security.gentoo.org / glsa/201610-10
Third Party Advisory
securityfocus.com / bid/93492
Broken LinkThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry
securitytracker.com / id/1036985
Broken LinkThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry