CVE-2012-3274 in Intelligent Management Center
Summary
by MITRE
Stack-based buffer overflow in uam.exe in the User Access Manager (UAM) component in HP Intelligent Management Center (IMC) before 5.1 E0101P01 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via vectors related to log data.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/13/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2012-3274 represents a critical stack-based buffer overflow flaw within the uam.exe executable component of HP Intelligent Management Center's User Access Manager system. This issue affects HP IMC versions prior to 5.1 E0101P01 and exposes the system to remote code execution attacks through improper handling of log data inputs. The vulnerability resides in the way the UAM component processes incoming log information, creating an exploitable condition that allows malicious actors to overwrite stack memory contents and potentially gain unauthorized system access.
The technical nature of this flaw falls under CWE-121, which describes stack-based buffer overflow conditions where insufficient bounds checking allows attackers to write beyond allocated memory boundaries. The vulnerability specifically manifests when the uam.exe process receives malformed log data through network connections, particularly in scenarios involving user authentication or access logging operations. Attackers can craft specially formatted log entries that exceed the allocated buffer space, causing a stack overflow that can be leveraged to redirect program execution flow and execute arbitrary code with the privileges of the affected service.
Operationally, this vulnerability presents a severe threat to enterprise network infrastructure managed by HP IMC systems, as it enables remote attackers to execute code without requiring authentication credentials. The impact extends beyond simple privilege escalation to potentially allow full system compromise, data exfiltration, and lateral movement within the network environment. The attack surface is particularly concerning given that the vulnerability affects the core user access management functionality, which typically operates with elevated privileges and controls access to critical network resources. Organizations using affected HP IMC versions face significant risk of unauthorized access to their network management systems, potentially leading to complete infrastructure compromise.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2012-3274 primarily focus on immediate remediation through official HP patches and updates, specifically targeting the 5.1 E0101P01 version or later releases that contain the necessary fixes. Network segmentation and access controls should be implemented to limit exposure of the affected system to untrusted networks, while monitoring systems should be deployed to detect anomalous log data patterns that might indicate exploitation attempts. Security professionals should also consider implementing intrusion detection systems with signatures specific to this vulnerability and conduct thorough vulnerability assessments to identify all instances of the affected software across the enterprise environment. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this vulnerability under T1059 for command and script injection, with potential T1078 for valid accounts and T1566 for malicious file execution, highlighting the multi-faceted attack vectors available to adversaries exploiting this flaw.