# CVE-2016-10162: PHP WDDX NULL pointer dereference in php_wddx_pop_element

Source: https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2016-10162-php-wddx-null-pointer-dereference-in-php-wddx-pop-element  
Publisher: Junglewise Threat Intelligence, https://junglewise.ai/threats  
Published: 2017-01-24. Updated: 2026-05-13  
License: CC BY 4.0 with a link back

CVE-2016-10162 · Severity: high · CVSS 7.5 · Published 2017-01-24

PHP is a widely used programming language for web development. A vulnerability in its WDDX data exchange component allows an attacker to crash a web application by sending a specially crafted XML document. This results in a denial of service, potentially taking websites or web services offline.

Technologies: [PHP Group PHP](https://junglewise.ai/threats/technologies/php). Vendors: [PHP Group](https://junglewise.ai/threats/vendors/php-group).

## Quick answers

**Is CVE-2016-10162 exploited in the wild?** No. Junglewise Threat Intelligence has no report of CVE-2016-10162 being exploited in the wild.

**How severe is CVE-2016-10162?** High severity, with a CVSS score of 7.5, published 24 January 2017.

**Which products and versions are affected?** PHP Group PHP 7.0.x before 7.0.15, 7.1.x before 7.1.1.

**Is there a fix for CVE-2016-10162?** A patch was published on 2017-01-19: PHP 7.0.15 and 7.1.1 released Junglewise finds every place you run it, drafts the upgrade and applies it once you approve.

**How is CVE-2016-10162 attacked?** It is attacked over the network, in a software library.

**Am I affected by CVE-2016-10162?** Check whether you run PHP Group PHP at an affected version. Junglewise does that check for you around the clock: connect your code, cloud and domains, and it matches new vulnerabilities like this one against what you actually run and tells you when one reaches you.

## Technical details

A NULL pointer dereference exists in the php_wddx_pop_element function within ext/wddx/wddx.c. The vulnerability is triggered during the deserialization of a WDDX packet when an inapplicable class name (such as an interface or abstract class) is provided. The object_init_ex function fails to instantiate these types and returns a NULL object pointer, which is subsequently mishandled by the wddx_deserialize call. A remote, unauthenticated attacker can exploit this by submitting a malicious XML document to a PHP script that processes WDDX data, leading to an immediate process crash. This issue was resolved in PHP versions 7.0.15 and 7.1.1.

## Affected products

- PHP Group PHP 7.0.x before 7.0.15, 7.1.x before 7.1.1

## Timeline

- 2016-12-29: disclosed: Bug reported to PHP bug tracker
- 2017-01-24: advisory: NVD published the CVE record
- 2017-01-19: patched: PHP 7.0.15 and 7.1.1 released

## References

- [http://php.net/ChangeLog-7.php](http://php.net/ChangeLog-7.php)
- [http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/95668](http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/95668)
- [http://www.securitytracker.com/id/1037659](http://www.securitytracker.com/id/1037659)
- [https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2018:1296](https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2018:1296)
- [https://bugs.php.net/bug.php?id=73831](https://bugs.php.net/bug.php?id=73831)
- [https://github.com/php/php-src/commit/8d2539fa0faf3f63e1d1e7635347c5b9e777d47b](https://github.com/php/php-src/commit/8d2539fa0faf3f63e1d1e7635347c5b9e777d47b)

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