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FirefoxWeb browser · Mozilla

CVE-2012-0457

HIGH · 9.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2012-03-14
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 10.0 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
Use-after-free vulnerability in the nsSMILTimeValueSpec::ConvertBetweenTimeContainer function in Mozilla Firefox before 3.6.28 and 4.x through 10.0, Firefox ESR 10.x before 10.0.3, Thunderbird before 3.1.20 and 5.0 through 10.0, Thunderbird ESR 10.x before 10.0.3, and SeaMonkey before 2.8 might allow remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via an SVG animation.

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

Use-after-free vulnerability in Mozilla Firefox, Thunderbird, and SeaMonkey's SVG animation handling (nsSMILTimeValueSpec::ConvertBetweenTimeContainer) that allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via specially crafted SVG animations.

MitigationUpdate to patched versions: Firefox 3.6.28/10.0.3+, Thunderbird 3.1.20/10.0.3+, or SeaMonkey 2.8+. Consider disabling SVG animations as a defense-in-depth measure until patches can be applied.

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
FirefoxWeb browser
Affected:<= 3.6.27>= 4.0, <= 10.0= 10.0= 10.0.1= 10.0.2
ThunderbirdApplication
Affected:>= 1.0, <= 3.1.19> 5.0, <= 10.0
Thunderbird EsrApplication
Affected:= 10.0= 10.0.1= 10.0.2
SeamonkeyApplication
Affected:all versions= 1.0= 1.0.1= 1.0.2= 1.0.3= 1.0.4= 1.0.5= 1.0.6= 1.0.7= 1.0.8= 1.0.9= 1.1

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 Mozilla product
    Check if the system has Firefox, Thunderbird, or SeaMonkey installed. On Windows, check Program Files or Program Files (x86) for Mozilla folders. On Linux, check /usr/lib/firefox or similar. On macOS, check /Applications for Firefox, Thunderbird, or SeaMonkey.
    Affected if Any of these three products is installed
  2. Determine Firefox version
    For Firefox: Open the browser, click Help > About Firefox, or navigate to about:support. Note the version number displayed (for example, 10.0.2).
    Affected if Version is 3.6.27 or lower; OR between 4.0 and 10.0 inclusive; OR exactly 10.0, 10.0.1, or 10.0.2
  3. Determine Thunderbird version
    For Thunderbird: Open the application, click Help > About Thunderbird. Note the version number displayed.
    Affected if Version is between 1.0 and 3.1.19 inclusive; OR between 5.0 and 10.0 inclusive (versions 10.0, 10.0.1, 10.0.2 are specifically listed)
  4. Determine Thunderbird ESR version
    For Thunderbird ESR: Check if the installation is an ESR (Extended Support Release) variant. Help > About Thunderbird will display ESR in the version string. Note the exact version.
    Affected if Version is exactly 10.0, 10.0.1, or 10.0.2 ESR
  5. Determine SeaMonkey version
    For SeaMonkey: Open the application, click Help > About SeaMonkey. Note the version number displayed.
    Affected if Any version is installed (the vulnerability affects all SeaMonkey versions listed, including 1.0 through 1.1)

The environment is affected if Firefox is version 3.6.27 or lower, 4.0-10.0, or exactly 10.0/10.0.1/10.0.2; Thunderbird is version 1.0-3.1.19, 5.0-10.0.2, or ESR 10.0/10.0.1/10.0.2; or SeaMonkey of any version listed is installed.

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 10.0
Interim mitigation

Update to patched versions: Firefox 3.6.28/10.0.3+, Thunderbird 3.1.20/10.0.3+, or SeaMonkey 2.8+. Consider disabling SVG animations as a defense-in-depth measure until patches can be applied.

Recommended fix High confidence

Firefox 3.6.28, Firefox 10.0.3+, Firefox ESR 10.0.3+, Thunderbird 3.1.20, Thunderbird 10.0.3+, Thunderbird ESR 10.0.3+, SeaMonkey 2.8+

  1. Identify the currently installed Firefox, Thunderbird, SeaMonkey, or Firefox ESR version
  2. For Firefox 3.6.x: Upgrade to Firefox 3.6.28
  3. For Firefox 4.0-10.0.x: Upgrade to Firefox 10.0.3 or later (preferably the latest ESR or stable release)
  4. For Thunderbird 1.0-3.1.x: Upgrade to Thunderbird 3.1.20
  5. For Thunderbird 5.0-10.0.x: Upgrade to Thunderbird 10.0.3 or later
  6. For Thunderbird ESR 10.x: Upgrade to Thunderbird ESR 10.0.3 or later
  7. For SeaMonkey: Upgrade to SeaMonkey 2.8 or later
  8. Restart the application after upgrade
Caveat Ensure compatibility with existing extensions/plugins before upgrading; some older extensions may not work on newer versions

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

Fix this in Firefox Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
4.0 hours of engineering $750
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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-2012-0457 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