CVE-2012-2957
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 · uneditedThe management console in Symantec Web Gateway 5.0.x before 5.0.3.18 allows local users to gain privileges by modifying files, related to a "file inclusion" issue.
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 confidenceSymantec Web Gateway 5.0.x before 5.0.3.18 contains a file inclusion vulnerability in its management console that allows local authenticated users to modify files and gain elevated privileges. This is a local privilege escalation vulnerability requiring prior local access to the system.
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= 5.0= 5.0.1= 5.0.2= 5.0.3CVSS 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
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Complete
- Integrity
- Complete
- Availability
- Complete
AV:L/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 Symantec Web Gateway installationLocate the installation directory or running processes for Symantec Web Gateway. Common locations include /opt/symantec or C:\Program Files\Symantec\. Check running services for 'symantec' or 'swg' processes.Affected if Symantec Web Gateway is installed and running on the system
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Determine installed versionCheck the version of Symantec Web Gateway. Look for version files in the installation directory, or use command-line tools such as 'swgctl version' if available, or inspect version information in the management console about page.Affected if The installed version is 5.0, 5.0.1, 5.0.2, or 5.0.3 (any version before 5.0.3.18)
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Confirm management console accessibilityCheck if the Symantec Web Gateway management console HTTP/HTTPS service is running and accessible. Look for the web service process (typically on port 8000 or 443) and attempt to access the console URL if you have local access.Affected if The management console is accessible and responds to requests
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Verify local authentication is configuredCheck if local user accounts exist or are configured for accessing the management console. Review user configuration files or the management console user settings if accessible.Affected if Local user accounts can authenticate to the management console
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Check for privilege escalation indicatorsIf you have access, examine whether any management console users have elevated privileges or if the file inclusion vulnerability could be exploited to modify system files. Review any web server configuration for the console that may indicate the vulnerability is present.Affected if The file inclusion vulnerability exists and could allow authenticated users to modify files beyond their intended scope
The system is affected if Symantec Web Gateway versions 5.0 through 5.0.3 are installed, the management console is accessible, and local authenticated users exist who could exploit the file inclusion vulnerability for privilege escalation.
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 vendor patch by upgrading to Symantec Web Gateway version 5.0.3.18 or later, which addresses the file inclusion issue enabling local privilege escalation.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing4.0 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 $3,328.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2012-2957 — 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-2012-2957 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