CVE-2011-0916
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 · uneditedStack-based buffer overflow in the SMTP service in IBM Lotus Domino allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via long arguments in a filename parameter in a malformed MIME e-mail message, aka SPR KLYH889M8H.
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 confidenceStack-based buffer overflow in IBM Lotus Domino's SMTP service allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via long filename parameters in malformed MIME e-mail messages. This is a critical remote code execution vulnerability affecting the mail routing infrastructure.
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 dataall versionsCVSS 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
- Low
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Complete
- Integrity
- Complete
- Availability
- Complete
AV:N/AC:L/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Verify IBM Lotus Domino installationCheck system for IBM Lotus Domino installation by searching for Domino program directories (typically under /opt/ibm/lotus or C:\Lotus\Domino) or by checking installed programs listAffected if IBM Lotus Domino server software is present on the system
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Identify Domino versionRun 'domino -version' or 'nserver -version' from the Domino bin directory, or check the installed.properties file in the Domino data directoryAffected if Any version of IBM Lotus Domino is installed (the vulnerability affects all versions)
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Confirm SMTP service is enabledCheck Domino configuration notes.ini for 'SMTPServer=1' or examine the Domino Directory for SMTP server document settings, or query if TCP port 25 (SMTP) is listeningAffected if SMTP service is enabled and listening for incoming connections
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Verify patch statusCheck Domino data directory for installed fix packs using 'domino -p' command or examine fixpack listing in Domino\data\IBM_TECHNICAL_SUPPORT directory, or query IBM fix pack database for CVE-2011-0916Affected if No patches addressing CVE-2011-0916 have been applied to the Domino installation
The environment is affected if IBM Lotus Domino with SMTP enabled is running and lacks the CVE-2011-0916 patch, since all unpatched Domino versions are vulnerable to this stack-based buffer overflow via malformed MIME messages.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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.
From vendor dataApply the relevant IBM Lotus Domino patch or upgrade to a fixed version. Additionally, implement email gateway filtering to reject malformed MIME messages with excessively long filename parameters before they reach the Domino SMTP service.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing5.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,464.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2011-0916 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2011-0916 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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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.
- 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