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PatchSiren cyber security CVE debrief

CVE-2016-6235 Lepton Project CVE debrief

CVE-2016-6235 describes a denial-of-service issue in Dropbox Lepton 1.0's JPEG handling. A crafted JPEG can trigger a segmentation fault in setup_imginfo_jpg within lepton/jpgcoder.cc, which can crash the application. NVD classifies the issue as CVSS 3.0 AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H and CWE-399.

Vendor
Lepton Project
Product
CVE-2016-6235
CVSS
MEDIUM 5.5
CISA KEV
Not listed in stored evidence
Original CVE published
2017-02-02
Original CVE updated
2026-05-13
Advisory published
2017-02-02
Advisory updated
2026-05-13

Who should care

Operators and developers using Dropbox Lepton 1.0 to process JPEG files, especially in workflows that accept untrusted or user-supplied images.

Technical summary

The affected function is setup_imginfo_jpg in lepton/jpgcoder.cc. The described failure mode is a segmentation fault induced by a crafted JPEG, resulting in denial of service. The official NVD record maps the issue to lepton_project:lepton 1.0 and CWE-399 (resource management error). The CVSS vector indicates no privileges are needed, but user interaction is required, and availability impact is high.

Defensive priority

Medium: prioritize if Lepton 1.0 is used in any image-processing path that handles untrusted JPEGs, because a crash can interrupt service or processing pipelines.

Recommended defensive actions

  • Review the linked oss-security and GitHub issue references for patch context and remediation guidance.
  • Upgrade or replace Lepton 1.0 with a version or alternative that is not listed as vulnerable.
  • Treat JPEG inputs as untrusted and isolate image processing in a sandbox or separate service where practical.
  • Monitor for unexpected crashes or segmentation faults in workflows that invoke Lepton JPEG processing.
  • If you must keep the component in service, restrict exposure to trusted inputs until a fix is deployed.

Evidence notes

The source corpus identifies the vulnerable component as Dropbox Lepton 1.0 and references setup_imginfo_jpg in lepton/jpgcoder.cc. The narrative says 'remote attackers,' while the official NVD CVSS vector is AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R, which suggests the practical attack path involves local execution conditions and user interaction. This debrief follows the official record for severity framing and notes the discrepancy for accuracy.

Official resources

Publicly disclosed in the CVE record dated 2017-02-02. The supplied references point to an oss-security thread and a GitHub issue used for patch context.