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CVE Record

CVE-2016-20011: libgrss through 0.7.0 fails to perform TLS certificate verification when downloading feeds, allowing remote...

libgrss through 0.7.0 fails to perform TLS certificate verification when downloading feeds, allowing remote attackers to manipulate the contents of feeds without detection. This occurs because of the default behavior of SoupSessionSync.

UnknownCVSS not scoredNot KEV-listedUpdated
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Glexia's TakeAutomated analysismoderate

Security readout for executives and security teams

Plain-English summary

CVE-2016-20011 affects libgrss feed downloading. The library did not verify TLS certificates, so someone able to intercept network traffic could change feed content without the application detecting it. This is mainly an integrity risk for systems that trust RSS or Atom feed content for decisions, updates, or user-visible information.

Executive priority

Treat this as a moderate-priority integrity issue. It is not presented as actively exploited, but it can undermine trust in feed data where legacy libgrss is still used. Prioritize inventory, vendor patch verification, and review of business processes that rely on feed content.

Technical view

libgrss through 0.7.0 failed to perform TLS certificate verification when downloading feeds, attributed to default SoupSessionSync behavior. The CVE describes remote manipulation of feed contents without detection. The provided bundle does not include CVSS, CWE, complete CPE data, or confirmed downstream affected applications.

Likely exposure

Exposure is most likely in older Linux or GNOME-related applications that embed or depend on libgrss through version 0.7.0 for feed retrieval. The source bundle's affected table is incomplete, so confirm exposure by package and dependency inventory rather than product names alone.

Exploitation context

No active exploitation is cited, and the CVE is not listed as KEV in the bundle. Practical abuse would require an attacker to influence the network path or feed transport and benefit from altered feed content being trusted by an application or user.

Researcher notes

The strongest evidence is the CVE description and GNOME references. Affected product metadata is sparse, with no CVSS or CWE in the bundle. Avoid broad claims about downstream applications unless confirmed by local dependency analysis or vendor packaging advisories.

Mitigation direction

  • Inventory systems and applications using libgrss, especially versions through 0.7.0.
  • Review GNOME libgrss issue and merge request references for vendor remediation status.
  • Update affected packages when a trusted distribution or vendor fix is available.
  • Avoid trusting security-sensitive decisions from feeds fetched by vulnerable libgrss versions.
  • Monitor vendor advisories because the provided bundle lacks complete fix details.

Validation and detection

  • Check package inventories for installed libgrss versions through 0.7.0.
  • Identify applications that use libgrss to download HTTPS feeds.
  • Confirm whether distribution packages include the GNOME remediation referenced by the merge request.
  • Review feed-consuming workflows for security or operational decisions based on feed content.
  • Document any compensating controls if immediate update is unavailable.
Prepared
Confidence
medium
Sources
5

Public sources used

Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.

Potential ATT&CK relevance

Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context

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CVE-2016-20011 mapping review

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Vulnerability profileCVE Program record
Severity
Unknown
CVSS
Not scored
Known Exploited
No
Published
Official CVE source material

CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5

These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.

0CVSS vectors
0Timeline events
0ADP providers
4Source links

CVSS and timeline data

No CVSS vectors or timeline events were available in the normalized CVE source material.

Source materials

Affected products

Products and packages named in the record

VendorProductVersion / packageStatus
n/an/an/aListed
Weakness

CWE details

No CWE listed

CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.