dbcve.org
.net FrameworkApplication · Microsoft

CVE-2012-2519

HIGH · 7.9 CVSS v2.0 Published 2012-11-14
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
84/100
Remediation priority · High
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
Untrusted search path vulnerability in Entity Framework in ADO.NET in Microsoft .NET Framework 1.0 SP3, 1.1 SP1, 2.0 SP2, 3.5, 3.5.1, and 4 allows local users to gain privileges via a Trojan horse DLL in the current working directory, as demonstrated by a directory that contains a .NET application, aka ".NET Framework Insecure Library Loading 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

The Entity Framework in ADO.NET loads DLLs from the current working directory before checking system directories, allowing local attackers to place malicious DLLs (Trojan horse) in directories from which .NET applications are launched to achieve privilege escalation.

MitigationEnsure applications run from dedicated directories with restricted permissions and implement safe DLL search paths using SetDllDirectory or explicit full paths for all DLL loading operations to prevent loading from the current working directory.

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
.net FrameworkApplication
Affected:= 1.0= 1.1= 2.0= 3.5.1= 4.0= 3.5

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
Adjacent
Complexity
M
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Complete
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete

AV:A/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 .NET Framework version
    Check Windows registry at HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v[Version]\Release, or use PowerShell: Get-ItemProperty 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\*' | Select-Object PSChildName, Release
    Affected if The installed version matches 1.0, 1.1, 2.0, 3.5, 3.5.1, or 4.0
  2. Determine directories from which .NET applications are launched
    Identify the current working directory for any .NET applications using Task Manager to locate the process, then check the application's startup location or working directory using 'wmic process where "name like '%dotnet%'" get processid,executable or by reviewing application documentation
    Affected if .NET applications run from directories that may be accessible to other local users
  3. Review directory permissions on application launch locations
    Use 'icacls [directory]' or PowerShell 'Get-Acl [directory] | Format-List' to inspect permissions. Check if untrusted or low-privilege users have Write or CreateFiles permissions
    Affected if Non-administrative users have Write or CreateFile permissions to directories from which .NET applications are launched
  4. Check if safe DLL search mode is disabled
    Review application code, configuration files, or startup scripts for calls to SetDllDirectory("") which explicitly enables loading from CWD, or for absence of SetDllDirectory with a valid path. In registry, check for DisableLibraryInstallation under HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\.NETFramework
    Affected if Applications use default DLL search order (CWD first) without calling SetDllDirectory to set a safe path

You are affected if a vulnerable .NET Framework version (1.0-4.0) is installed AND your .NET applications are launched from directories where untrusted local users can write files, allowing them to place malicious DLLs that the application will load.

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

Ensure applications run from dedicated directories with restricted permissions and implement safe DLL search paths using SetDllDirectory or explicit full paths for all DLL loading operations to prevent loading from the current working directory.

Fix this in .net Framework Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation12.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
28.0 hours of engineering $4,880
Get help mitigating

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $7,808.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2012-2519 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

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-2012-2519 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

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