# CVE-2017-16516: yajl-ruby gem Denial of Service vulnerability

> A crafted JSON file causes the yajl-ruby library to crash the Ruby process, leading to a denial of service.

- **Severity:** High 7.5 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 3 Nov 2017
- **Updated:** 5 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** DEBIAN-CVE-2017-16516, DLA-1167-1, GHSA-wwh7-4jw9-33x6, OESA-2025-1156, UBUNTU-CVE-2017-16516

## What is CVE-2017-16516?

CVE-2017-16516 is a high-severity denial of service vulnerability in Debian Debian Linux, published on 3 Nov 2017. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

In the yajl-ruby gem 1.3.0 for Ruby, when a crafted JSON file is supplied to Yajl::Parser.new.parse, the whole ruby process crashes with a SIGABRT in the yajl_string_decode function in yajl_encode.c. This results in the whole ruby process terminating and potentially a denial of service.

Weakness: CWE-134 (Use of Externally-Controlled Format String)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2017-16516?

2 open source packages ship an affected version, including yajl-ruby. It affects 2 products.


| Package | Ecosystem | Affected | Fixed in |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `yajl-ruby` | RubyGems | All versions | 1.3.1 |
| `yajl-ruby` | RubyGems | All versions | 1.3.1 |

Products: Debian Debian Linux, Yajl-Ruby Project Yajl-Ruby.

## How do I fix CVE-2017-16516?

Upgrade yajl-ruby to 1.3.1 or later.

## Is CVE-2017-16516 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2017-16516 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Debian Debian Linux

- [CVE-2015-3306](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-3306/): ProFTPD Improper Access Control (critical 10.0, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2025-49113](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-49113/): RoundCube Webmail Deserialization of Untrusted Data (critical 9.9, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2026-24061](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-24061/): GNU InetUtils Argument Injection (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2025-39682](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-39682/): Linux Kernel Improper Check for Unusual or Exceptional Conditions (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2024-9680](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-9680/): Mozilla Firefox Use-After-Free (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2017-16516 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2017-16516 is a high-severity denial of service vulnerability in Debian Debian Linux, published on 3 Nov 2017. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2017-16516 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected packages and fixed versions:
- yajl-ruby (RubyGems): affected all versions; fixed in 1.3.1
- yajl-ruby (RubyGems): affected all versions; fixed in 1.3.1

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-16516/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-16516/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-16516
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-16516
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2017-16516

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-16516/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.