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Lotus NotesApplication · Ibm

CVE-2011-0912

HIGH · 9.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2011-02-08
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
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
Argument injection vulnerability in IBM Lotus Notes 8.0.x before 8.0.2 FP6 and 8.5.x before 8.5.1 FP5 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a cai:// URL containing a --launcher.library option that specifies a UNC share pathname for a DLL file, aka SPR PRAD82YJW2.

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

IBM Lotus Notes contains an argument injection vulnerability where specially crafted cai:// URLs with the --launcher.library option can specify a UNC path to a malicious DLL file, leading to arbitrary code execution. This affects Notes 8.0.x before FP6 and 8.5.x before FP5.

MitigationUpgrade IBM Lotus Notes to version 8.0.2 FP6, 8.5.1 FP5, or later to remediate this vulnerability. As an interim control, consider blocking or disabling cai:// URL handling in enterprise environments.

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
Lotus NotesApplication
Affected:= 8.0= 8.0.1= 8.0.2= 8.0.2.0= 8.0.2.1= 8.0.2.2= 8.0.2.3= 8.0.2.4= 8.0.2.5= 8.5.0.0= 8.5.0.1= 8.5.1.0

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. Locate IBM Lotus Notes installation directory
    Check the typical installation path (C:\Program Files\IBM\Lotus\Notes or C:\Program Files (x86)\IBM\Lotus\Notes) or search for 'notes.exe' on the system.
    Affected if IBM Lotus Notes software is present on the system.
  2. Identify the installed Lotus Notes version
    Open the Lotus Notes client and navigate to Help > About IBM Lotus Notes, or right-click the notes.exe file and view Properties > Details to see the File Version. Alternatively, check the Windows registry under HKLM\Software\IBM\Lotus\Notes or HKLM\Software\Wow6432Node\IBM\Lotus\Notes for the 'Version' value.
    Affected if The version cannot be determined or does not match the installed product.
  3. Compare installed version against affected ranges
    Review the version number obtained. Affected versions are: 8.0, 8.0.1, 8.0.2 (all subversions including .0 through .5), 8.5.0.0, 8.5.0.1, and 8.5.1.0. Note that versions 8.0.2 FP6 and later, and 8.5.1 FP5 and later are NOT affected.
    Affected if The installed version is 8.0.x before Fix Pack 6, or 8.5.x before Fix Pack 5, or matches any of the specific versions listed: 8.0, 8.0.1, 8.0.2, 8.0.2.0, 8.0.2.1, 8.0.2.2, 8.0.2.3, 8.0.2.4, 8.0.2.5, 8.5.0.0, 8.5.0.1, or 8.5.1.0.
  4. Confirm cai:// URL protocol handler is active
    The cai:// protocol handler is enabled by default in vulnerable versions. This can be observed in Windows registry under HKCR\cai (or HKLM\Software\Classes\cai) where the protocol handler is registered. If the Lotus Notes client is installed, this handler is typically present and active.
    Affected if The cai:// protocol handler is registered and enabled on the system.

A user is affected if IBM Lotus Notes version 8.0.x before FP6 or 8.5.x before FP5 is installed, and the cai:// URL protocol handler (enabled by default) can be triggered to process specially crafted URLs with the --launcher.library option.

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
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Upgrade IBM Lotus Notes to version 8.0.2 FP6, 8.5.1 FP5, or later to remediate this vulnerability. As an interim control, consider blocking or disabling cai:// URL handling in enterprise environments.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Lotus Notes 8.0.2 FP6 or later, or 8.5.1 FP5 or later

  1. Identify the current IBM Lotus Notes version in use (8.0.x or 8.5.x branch)
  2. For Lotus Notes 8.0.x users: Upgrade to version 8.0.2 with Fix Pack 6 (FP6) or later
  3. For Lotus Notes 8.5.x users: Upgrade to version 8.5.1 with Fix Pack 5 (FP5) or later
  4. Verify the upgrade by checking Help > About IBM Lotus Notes to confirm the installed version includes the security fix
Caveat Review IBM Lotus Notes release notes for compatibility notes with existing Domino servers and plugins before upgrading

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

Fix this in Lotus Notes Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
6.0 hours of engineering $1,040
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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-2011-0912 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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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