What is CVE-2016-3081?
Apache Struts 2.3.19 to 2.3.20.2, 2.3.21 to 2.3.24.1, and 2.3.25 to 2.3.28, when Dynamic Method Invocation is enabled, allow remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via method: prefix, related to chained expressions.
The record classifies CVE-2016-3081 under weakness class CWE-77. Its CVSS v3 base vector states that the flaw is reachable remotely over the network, needs no prior authentication, needs no user interaction, and has high impact on confidentiality, integrity, availability. The identifier was first published 3819 days ago.
Severity and exploitation probability
- CVSS v3.1 base score
- 8.1 — HIGH
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H - EPSS (FIRST)
- 94.5% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, higher than 99.8% of all scored CVEs
- CISA KEV
- Listed since 2026-10-08, federal remediation deadline 2026-10-11
- Threadlinqs priority
- 9/10 — CISA KEV-listed, which Threadlinqs floors at 9
- Published
- 2016-04-26, last modified 2026-10-09
Is CVE-2016-3081 being exploited?
CISA added CVE-2016-3081 to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 2026-10-08, which means the agency holds evidence of exploitation in the wild; US federal civilian agencies had to remediate it by 2026-10-11 under BOD 22-01. Weaponised exploit code for CVE-2016-3081 is publicly available. 1 public proof-of-concept repository is tracked for this identifier. A ProjectDiscovery Nuclei detection template exists (http/cves/2016/CVE-2016-3081.yaml). It currently carries a trending score of 50 in the Threadlinqs vulnerability feed.
- trickest/cve (trickest)
Affected products and versions
Affected software packages:
maven:org.apache.struts:struts2-core— patched in 2.3.20.3maven:org.apache.struts:struts2-core— patched in 2.3.28.1maven:org.apache.struts:struts2-core— patched in 2.3.24.3
How to fix CVE-2016-3081
Fixed versions are recorded for 3 packages: maven:org.apache.struts:struts2-core 2.3.20.3, maven:org.apache.struts:struts2-core 2.3.28.1, maven:org.apache.struts:struts2-core 2.3.24.3. Because CVE-2016-3081 is KEV-listed, US federal civilian agencies were required to apply the vendor fix, or stop using the product, by 2026-10-11. No vendor patch reference has been recorded for CVE-2016-3081 in the tracked sources. Follow the references below for a fix, and treat any affected deployment as exposed until the vendor states otherwise.
Threat activity tracking CVE-2016-3081
1 tracked threat in the Threadlinqs corpus references CVE-2016-3081, either in the campaign’s CVE list or as an indicator on the campaign record.
Sources
Enriched from CVE.org, FIRST EPSS, CISA KEV, GitHub Security Advisories, public proof-of-concept repositories, ProjectDiscovery Nuclei. Last verified by Threadlinqs on .