dbcve.org
Mail SecurityApplication · Symantec

CVE-2011-0548

HIGH · 9.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2011-07-18
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 10.5.2 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
Buffer overflow in the Lotus Freelance Graphics PRZ file viewer in Autonomy KeyView, as used in Symantec Mail Security (SMS) 6.x through 8.x, Symantec Brightmail and Messaging Gateway before 9.5.1, and Symantec Data Loss Prevention (DLP) before 10.5.3 and 11.x before 11.1, allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (application crash) or possibly execute arbitrary code via a crafted .prz file. NOTE: this may overlap CVE-2011-1217.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

Buffer overflow in the Lotus Freelance Graphics PRZ file viewer in Autonomy KeyView allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via crafted .prz files. This vulnerability exists in multiple Symantec security products (Mail Security, Brightmail, Messaging Gateway, and DLP) that use the affected KeyView library for attachment processing.

MitigationApply available vendor patches for affected Symantec products to the latest supported versions (SMS 8.x, Messaging Gateway 9.5.1+, DLP 10.5.3+/11.1+); implement email gateway filtering to block or quarantine untrusted .prz attachments until patches are deployed.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
Mail SecurityApplication
Affected:= 6.0.0= 7.5= 8.0
Brightmail And Messaging GatewayApplication
Affected:<= 9.5= 4.0.0= 4.1.0= 5.0= 7.7= 8.0= 9.0= 9.0.1= 9.0.2
Data Loss PreventionApplication
Affected:<= 10.5.2= 7.0= 7.1= 7.2= 8.0= 8.1= 8.1.1= 9.0= 10= 10.5= 10.5.1= 11.0

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
M
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Complete
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete

AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify installed Symantec product
    Determine which Symantec security product is deployed: Mail Security, Brightmail, Messaging Gateway, or Data Loss Prevention. Check installed programs or running services for product name.
    Affected if Product is one of: Symantec Mail Security, Brightmail, Messaging Gateway, or Data Loss Prevention
  2. Check product version
    Locate the installed version number of the Symantec product. For Mail Security, check the About or version info in the console. For Brightmail/Messaging Gateway, check the admin interface or version file. For DLP, check the Enforce console or installed version.
    Affected if Version matches or falls within: SMS 6.0.0, 7.5, or 8.0; Brightmail/Messaging Gateway 4.0.0-9.5.2 (any version <= 9.5.2 or equals 9.0.1, 9.0.2); DLP <= 10.5.2, or equals 7.0-11.0 (any of 7.0, 7.1, 7.2, 8.0, 8.1, 8.1.1, 9.0, 10, 10.5, 10.5.1, 11.0)
  3. Verify KeyView attachment processing is enabled
    Check if the KeyView library or attachment processing feature is active on the Symantec product. For Mail Security, check Content > Attachment Filtering settings. For Messaging Gateway, check Content > Filtering. For DLP, check policy settings that enable attachment inspection.
    Affected if Attachment processing via KeyView is enabled and the system processes incoming .prz attachments

You are affected if a vulnerable Symantec product version is installed AND KeyView-based attachment processing is enabled, allowing the system to parse .prz files.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 10.5.2
Interim mitigation

Apply available vendor patches for affected Symantec products to the latest supported versions (SMS 8.x, Messaging Gateway 9.5.1+, DLP 10.5.3+/11.1+); implement email gateway filtering to block or quarantine untrusted .prz attachments until patches are deployed.

Recommended fix High confidence

Symantec Mail Security: latest 8.x release; Brightmail/Messaging Gateway: 9.5.1 or later; Data Loss Prevention: 10.5.3+ or 11.1+

  1. Identify the specific Symantec product and version currently installed from the affected list (Mail Security, Brightmail/Messaging Gateway, or Data Loss Prevention)
  2. For Symantec Mail Security 6.x through 8.x: Upgrade to the latest version or at minimum version 8.x if not already at latest 8.x release
  3. For Symantec Brightmail and Messaging Gateway: Upgrade to version 9.5.1 or later
  4. For Symantec Data Loss Prevention: If on version 10.x, upgrade to 10.5.3 or later; if on version 11.x, upgrade to 11.1 or later
  5. After upgrading, verify the KeyView component has been updated to a version that addresses the vulnerability
  6. Test the updated product with sample PRZ files to ensure proper parsing and no crashes
Caveat Major version upgrades of DLP may require configuration review and testing; ensure compatibility with existing infrastructure before production deployment

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Mail Security Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
20.0 hours of engineering $3,500
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $5,600.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2011-0548 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2011-0548 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data