CVE-2016-3169
Drupal saving user accounts can sometimes grant the user all roles
The User module in Drupal 6.x before 6.38 and 7.x before 7.43 allows remote attackers to gain privileges by leveraging contributed or custom code that calls the user_save function with an explicit category and loads all roles into the array.
Attack profile
How easy it is to exploit
- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- High
- Privileges needed
- None
- User interaction
- None
What an attacker can affect
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
Exploit likelihood
What each source reports
NVD Score used
The User module in Drupal 6.x before 6.38 and 7.x before 7.43 allows remote attackers to gain privileges by leveraging contributed or custom code that calls the user_save function with an explicit category and loads all roles into the array.
- Record
CVE-2016-3169- CVSS 3.0
- 8.1 High
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H - CVSS 2.0
- 6.8 Medium
AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P - Weakness
- CWE-264
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
CVE List No score
The User module in Drupal 6.x before 6.38 and 7.x before 7.43 allows remote attackers to gain privileges by leveraging contributed or custom code that calls the user_save function with an explicit category and loads all roles into the array.
- Record
CVE-2016-3169- Updated
- 2026-11-02
EUVDEUVD-2022-4869 No score
The User module in Drupal 6.x before 6.38 and 7.x before 7.43 allows remote attackers to gain privileges by leveraging contributed or custom code that calls the user_save function with an explicit category and loads all roles into the array.
- Record
EUVD-2022-4869- Updated
- 2026-11-03
GitHub AdvisoriesGHSA-q3p9-8728-wq7x
Drupal saving user accounts can sometimes grant the user all roles
The User module in Drupal 6.x before 6.38 and 7.x before 7.43 allows remote attackers to gain privileges by leveraging contributed or custom code that calls the user_save function with an explicit category and loads all roles into the array.
- Record
GHSA-q3p9-8728-wq7x- CVSS 3.0
- 8.1 High
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H - Weakness
- CWE-269
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSV
The User module in Drupal 6.x before 6.38 and 7.x before 7.43 allows remote attackers to gain privileges by leveraging contributed or custom code that calls the user_save function with an explicit category and loads all roles into the array.
- Record
CVE-2016-3169- CVSS 3.0
- 8.1 High
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H - Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSVGHSA-q3p9-8728-wq7x
Drupal saving user accounts can sometimes grant the user all roles
The User module in Drupal 6.x before 6.38 and 7.x before 7.43 allows remote attackers to gain privileges by leveraging contributed or custom code that calls the user_save function with an explicit category and loads all roles into the array.
- Record
GHSA-q3p9-8728-wq7x- CVSS 3.0
- 8.1 High
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H - Weakness
- CWE-269
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSVUBUNTU-CVE-2016-3169
The User module in Drupal 6.x before 6.38 and 7.x before 7.43 allows remote attackers to gain privileges by leveraging contributed or custom code that calls the user_save function with an explicit category and loads all roles into the array.
- Record
UBUNTU-CVE-2016-3169- CVSS 3.0
- 8.1 High
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H - Updated
- 2026-11-02
Affected products
Affected packages
| Package | Affected | Fixed |
|---|---|---|
drupal/corePackagist |
6.0 up to 6.38 | 6.38 |
drupal/corePackagist |
7.0 up to 7.43 | 7.43 |
drupal/drupalPackagist |
7.0 up to 7.43 | 7.43 |
drupal/drupalPackagist |
6.0 up to 6.38 | 6.38 |
drupal7Debian:7 From an advisory covering 6 CVEs |
before 7.14-2+deb7u12, plus listed versions 7.14-27.14-2+deb7u17.14-2+deb7u107.14-2+deb7u10~bpo60+17.14-2+deb7u11 Show 15 moreShow less7.14-2+deb7u11~bpo60+17.14-2+deb7u1~bpo60+17.14-2+deb7u27.14-2+deb7u2~bpo60+17.14-2+deb7u37.14-2+deb7u47.14-2+deb7u4~bpo60+17.14-2+deb7u57.14-2+deb7u67.14-2+deb7u6~bpo60+17.14-2+deb7u77.14-2+deb7u7~bpo60+17.14-2+deb7u87.14-2+deb7u97.14-2+deb7u9~bpo60+1 |
7.14-2+deb7u12 |
drupal7Debian:8 From an advisory covering 6 CVEs |
before 7.32-1+deb8u6, plus listed versions 7.32-1+deb8u37.32-1+deb8u47.32-1+deb8u4~bpo70+17.32-1+deb8u57.32-1+deb8u5~bpo70+1 |
7.32-1+deb8u6 |
drupal7Ubuntu:Pro:14.04:LTS |
All versions, plus listed versions 7.23-17.24-17.24-27.26-17.26-1ubuntu0.17.26-1ubuntu0.1+esm17.26-1ubuntu0.1+esm27.26-1ubuntu0.1+esm3 |
None known |
History
| Recorded | Changed | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| affected, facts | ||
| aliases | EUVD | |
| first indexed | CVE List, GitHub Advisories, NVD, OSV |
Dates are when Every CVE recorded each change. Upstream dates may differ.
In short
CVE-2016-3169 is a high vulnerability (CVSS 8.1) in Drupal, published February 28, 2016. No source lists public exploit code. EPSS puts the chance of exploitation in the next 30 days at 2.22%, the 82nd percentile. Fixed in drupal/core 6.38.