CVE-2013-5016
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 · uneditedSymantec Critical System Protection (SCSP) before 5.2.9, when installed on an unpatched Windows Server 2003 R2 platform, allows remote attackers to bypass policy settings via unspecified vectors.
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 · moderate confidenceSymantec Critical System Protection (SCSP) before version 5.2.9 contains a security bypass vulnerability when running on unpatched Windows Server 2003 R2. Remote attackers can circumvent policy settings through unspecified vectors, potentially allowing unauthorized system modifications or malware execution despite protection policies being in place.
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<= 5.2.8CVSS 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
- High
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Complete
- Integrity
- Complete
- Availability
- Complete
AV:N/AC:H/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 SCSP installationCheck if Symantec Critical System Protection is installed on the system by looking for the SCSP service or program directory. On Windows, this can be done via the Services snap-in (services.msc) looking for 'Symantec Critical System Protection' service, or via Add/Remove Programs.Affected if SCSP is not installed on the system - the vulnerability only applies to systems with SCSP running.
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Determine installed SCSP versionLocate and read the SCSP version information. This is typically available through the SCSP management console, or by checking the program's properties in Add/Remove Programs, or by examining the version resource of the main SCSP executable (commonly located in the installation directory such as C:\Program Files\Symantec\SCSP\).Affected if The installed version is 5.2.8 or any version lower than 5.2.9 - versions 5.2.9 and later are not affected.
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Confirm Windows Server 2003 R2 is the host OSIdentify the host operating system by running 'systeminfo' at a command prompt or checking System Properties. Look for 'Microsoft Windows Server 2003 R2' as the OS.Affected if The system is running Windows Server 2003 R2 - this vulnerability specifically affects SCSP when running on this operating system version.
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Assess Windows Server 2003 R2 patch statusReview the Windows Update history or run 'wmic qfe list' to enumerate installed patches on Windows Server 2003 R2. Check for the presence of Microsoft security updates.Affected if Windows Server 2003 R2 has missing or unapplied Microsoft patches - the vulnerability is triggered when SCSP runs on an unpatched Windows Server 2003 R2 system.
A system is affected if it has SCSP version 5.2.8 or earlier installed on a Windows Server 2003 R2 host that lacks current Microsoft security patches.
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 dataUpdate Symantec Critical System Protection to version 5.2.9 or later, and ensure Windows Server 2003 R2 has all available Microsoft patches applied (though note Windows Server 2003 reached end-of-life).
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing6.0 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 $4,128.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2013-5016 — 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-2013-5016 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