CVE-2012-5003
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 · uneditednxapplet.jar in No Machine NX Web Companion 3.x and earlier does not properly verify the authenticity of updates, which allows user-assisted remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted (1) SiteUrl or (2) RedirectUrl parameter that points to a Trojan Horse client.zip update file.
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 confidenceThe nxapplet.jar in No Machine NX Web Companion 3.x and earlier lacks proper update authenticity verification, allowing remote attackers to supply malicious client.zip update files via crafted SiteUrl or RedirectUrl parameters, leading to arbitrary code execution.
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<= 3.5.0-2= 1.5.0= 2.0.0-1= 2.1.0-1= 3.0.0-1= 3.0.0-2= 3.0.0-3= 3.0.0-4= 3.0.0-5= 3.1.0-1= 3.2.0-1= 3.3.0-1CVSS 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
- Partial
- Integrity
- Partial
- Availability
- Partial
AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P
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.
-
Identify NX Web Companion installationLocate the No Machine NX Web Companion installation directory on the system, typically found in the application data or program files folder. Look for files named nxapplet.jar or related NX client components.Affected if The product is installed and the nxapplet.jar file exists in the installation directory.
-
Determine installed versionCheck the version of the installed NX Web Companion software. This can usually be found in the application metadata, about dialog, or the nxapplet.jar manifest file. Compare the version number against the affected list: <= 3.5.0-2, 1.5.0, 2.0.0-1, 2.1.0-1, 3.0.0-1 through 3.0.0-5, 3.1.0-1, 3.2.0-1, or 3.3.0-1.Affected if The installed version matches any version listed as affected.
-
Locate update configurationInspect the NX Web Companion configuration files or web server configuration where the applet is hosted. Look for settings related to update URLs, SiteUrl parameter, or RedirectUrl parameter that control where the client checks for updates.Affected if Update-related configuration parameters such as SiteUrl or RedirectUrl are present and configurable.
-
Verify update mechanism is enabledDetermine whether the automatic update feature is enabled in the NX Web Companion configuration. This may involve checking if the client.zip update mechanism is active or if users are prompted for updates.Affected if The update mechanism is enabled and the application attempts to fetch client.zip files from configurable URLs.
The environment is affected if No Machine NX Web Companion is installed with a version matching the affected versions list and the update mechanism with configurable SiteUrl or RedirectUrl parameters is active.
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 dataRestrict update sources to trusted HTTPS endpoints with proper certificate validation, or implement cryptographic signature verification for update packages before execution.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation12.0 h
- Testing8.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
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 locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2012-5003 — 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-2012-5003 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
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.
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