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GroupwiseApplication · Novell

CVE-2012-0271

HIGH · 10.0 CVSS v2.0 Published 2012-09-19
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
Public exploit 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
Integer overflow in the WebConsole component in gwia.exe in GroupWise Internet Agent (GWIA) in Novell GroupWise 8.0 before 8.0.3 HP1 and 2012 before SP1 might allow remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted request that triggers a heap-based buffer overflow, as demonstrated by a request with -1 in the Content-Length HTTP header.

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

Integer overflow in the WebConsole component of gwia.exe in Novell GroupWise Internet Agent allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via crafted HTTP requests containing -1 in the Content-Length header, which triggers a heap-based buffer overflow.

MitigationApply vendor-supplied patches: upgrade to GroupWise 8.0.3 HP1 or 2012 SP1 or later. Alternatively, restrict network access to the WebConsole interface until patching can be completed.

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
GroupwiseApplication
Affected:= 8.0= 8.01= 8.02= 8.03= 2012= 5.2= 5.5= 5.57e= 6.0= 6.0.1= 6.5= 6.5.2

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
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 checks

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

  1. Confirm GroupWise Internet Agent is installed
    Check for gwia.exe process running on the system, or locate gwia.exe in the GroupWise installation directory
    Affected if gwia.exe is present and running on the system
  2. Identify installed GroupWise version
    Right-click on gwia.exe file, select Properties, and check the Version tab to obtain the exact version number. Alternatively, check the GroupWise administration console for the installed version.
    Affected if The installed version matches any of these: 8.0, 8.01, 8.02, 8.03, 2012, 5.2, 5.5, 5.57e, 6.0, 6.0.1, 6.5, or 6.5.2
  3. Verify WebConsole component is enabled
    Examine the GroupWise Internet Agent configuration files (typically in the GWIA directory) for WebConsole settings, or check the GroupWise admin interface for WebConsole status.
    Affected if WebConsole is enabled in the configuration
  4. Check network accessibility of WebConsole
    Identify the WebConsole port (default HTTP port 9850 or HTTPS port 9851) and verify if it is listening on network interfaces. Use netstat -an or similar tool to check for listening ports.
    Affected if WebConsole port is listening on a reachable network interface, making it accessible to remote attackers

You are affected if gwia.exe is running with an affected GroupWise version AND WebConsole is enabled and network-accessible.

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

Apply vendor-supplied patches: upgrade to GroupWise 8.0.3 HP1 or 2012 SP1 or later. Alternatively, restrict network access to the WebConsole interface until patching can be completed.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

GroupWise 8.0.3 HP1 or GroupWise 2012 SP1

  1. 1. Identify the current GroupWise Internet Agent (GWIA) version by checking gwia.exe properties or using GroupWise administration tools
  2. 2. If running GroupWise 8.0, 8.01, 8.02, or 8.03: upgrade to GroupWise 8.0.3 HP1 (Hot Patch 1) or later
  3. 3. If running GroupWise 2012: upgrade to GroupWise 2012 SP1 or later
  4. 4. After upgrade, verify the WebConsole component (gwia.exe) has been updated and the integer overflow vulnerability is addressed
  5. 5. Test the upgraded GWIA service to ensure normal mail gateway functionality
Caveat Standard patch upgrades typically do not introduce breaking changes; review GroupWise 8.0.3 HP1 and 2012 SP1 release notes for any configuration or compatibility notes

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

Fix this in Groupwise Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation3.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
15.0 hours of engineering $2,580
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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-2012-0271 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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What belongs here
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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