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Data Access ComponentsApplication · Microsoft

CVE-2012-1891

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2012-07-10
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
Heap-based buffer overflow in Microsoft Data Access Components (MDAC) 2.8 SP1 and SP2 and Windows Data Access Components (WDAC) 6.0 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via crafted XML data that triggers access to an uninitialized object in memory, aka "ADO Cachesize Heap Overflow RCE Vulnerability."

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

Heap-based buffer overflow in Microsoft Data Access Components (MDAC) 2.8 SP1/SP2 and WDAC 6.0 allows remote code execution via crafted XML data that triggers access to an uninitialized object in memory. The vulnerability is in the ADO Cachesize component and can be exploited without authentication.

MitigationApply the Microsoft security update for CVE-2012-1891 (released in 2012) or migrate to supported versions of Windows/Data Access Components. Network filtering of untrusted XML input can provide interim protection.

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
Data Access ComponentsApplication
Affected:= 2.8
Windows Data Access ComponentsApplication
Affected:= 6.0

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
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

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 MDAC version
    Check the version of msado15.dll (the ADO data access component). Locate the file in the system (typically at %ProgramFiles%\Common Files\System\ado\msado15.dll) and view its File Version property, or run 'dir /s msado15.dll' from the root and note the found path and version.
    Affected if The reported file version is 2.8.xxxx (any Service Pack 1 or 2) or if the version cannot be determined but the file exists on a legacy Windows system without recent updates.
  2. Identify installed WDAC version
    Check the version of msadox.dll (the extended ADO components). Locate the file in the system (typically at %ProgramFiles%\Common Files\System\ado\msadox.dll) and view its File Version property.
    Affected if The reported file version is 6.0.xxxx or if the version cannot be determined but the file exists on a legacy Windows system without recent updates.
  3. Verify MDAC/WDAC registry keys
    Query the Windows registry for the MDAC version key. Run 'reg query "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\DataAccess" /v Version' or check 'HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Setup\OCX\{2F7427F1-4C90-11D0-8D11-00A0C91BC942}' for WDAC components.
    Affected if The version value returned starts with "2.8" for MDAC or "6.0" for WDAC.
  4. Check application usage of ADO Cachesize property
    Review application source code, configuration files, or IIS logs to determine if any application uses the ADO Cachesize property when handling XML data sources. This property controls row caching behavior in ADO Recordset objects.
    Affected if Applications process XML data sources through ADO and explicitly set the Cachesize property to a value that could trigger the overflow condition.

The system is affected if MDAC version 2.8 (any SP) or WDAC version 6.0 is installed AND the system processes untrusted XML data through ADO components, without the 2012 security update applied.

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.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply the Microsoft security update for CVE-2012-1891 (released in 2012) or migrate to supported versions of Windows/Data Access Components. Network filtering of untrusted XML input can provide interim protection.

Fix this in Data Access Components Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
13.0 hours of engineering $2,280
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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-2012-1891 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
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