IBM Lotus iNotes 8.5 ActiveX Control dwa85W.dll memory corruption

CVSS Meta Temp Score
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CTI Interest Score
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9.5$0-$5k0.00

Summaryinfo

A vulnerability identified as critical has been detected in IBM Lotus iNotes. The impacted element is an unknown function in the library dwa85W.dll of the component ActiveX Control. Performing a manipulation results in memory corruption. This vulnerability is known as CVE-2012-2175. Furthermore, an exploit is available. You should upgrade the affected component.

Detailsinfo

A vulnerability was found in IBM Lotus iNotes (Groupware Software). It has been classified as very critical. This affects some unknown functionality in the library dwa85W.dll of the component ActiveX Control. The manipulation with an unknown input leads to a memory corruption vulnerability. CWE is classifying the issue as CWE-119. The product performs operations on a memory buffer, but it can read from or write to a memory location that is outside of the intended boundary of the buffer. This is going to have an impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability. The summary by CVE is:

Buffer overflow in the Attachment_Times method in a certain ActiveX control in dwa85W.dll in IBM Lotus iNotes 8.5.x before 8.5.3 FP2 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a long argument.

The weakness was published 06/20/2012 by Gaurav Baruah (Website). It is possible to read the advisory at xforce.iss.net. This vulnerability is uniquely identified as CVE-2012-2175 since 04/04/2012. It is possible to initiate the attack remotely. No form of authentication is needed for exploitation. Technical details and a public exploit are known. The pricing for an exploit might be around USD $0-$5k at the moment (estimation calculated on 08/26/2025). It is expected to see the exploit prices for this product increasing in the near future.

A public exploit has been developed in Ruby. The exploit is shared for download at securityfocus.com. It is declared as highly functional. We expect the 0-day to have been worth approximately $25k-$100k. The vulnerability scanner Nessus provides a plugin with the ID 59685 (IBM Lotus iNotes Upload Module ActiveX Control Attachment_Times() Method Buffer Overflow), which helps to determine the existence of the flaw in a target environment. It is assigned to the family Windows. The commercial vulnerability scanner Qualys is able to test this issue with plugin 120752 (IBM Lotus iNotes dwa85W ActiveX Remote Code Execution Vulnerability).

Upgrading to version 8.5.2.0 eliminates this vulnerability. Furthermore it is possible to detect and prevent this kind of attack with TippingPoint and the filter 11843.

The vulnerability is also documented in the databases at X-Force (75321), Exploit-DB (23736), Tenable (59685), SecurityFocus (BID 53879†) and Vulnerability Center (SBV-35392†). Statistical analysis made it clear that VulDB provides the best quality for vulnerability data.

Productinfo

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Website

CPE 2.3info

CPE 2.2info

CVSSv4info

VulDB Vector: 🔍
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

CVSSv3info

VulDB Meta Base Score: 10.0
VulDB Meta Temp Score: 9.5

VulDB Base Score: 10.0
VulDB Temp Score: 9.5
VulDB Vector: 🔍
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

CVSSv2info

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VectorComplexityAuthenticationConfidentialityIntegrityAvailability
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VulDB Base Score: 🔍
VulDB Temp Score: 🔍
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

NVD Base Score: 🔍

Exploitinginfo

Class: Memory corruption
CWE: CWE-119
CAPEC: 🔍
ATT&CK: 🔍

Physical: No
Local: No
Remote: Yes

Availability: 🔍
Access: Public
Status: Highly functional
Programming Language: 🔍
Download: 🔍

EPSS Score: 🔍
EPSS Percentile: 🔍

Price Prediction: 🔍
Current Price Estimation: 🔍

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Nessus ID: 59685
Nessus Name: IBM Lotus iNotes Upload Module ActiveX Control Attachment_Times() Method Buffer Overflow
Nessus File: 🔍
Nessus Risk: 🔍
Nessus Family: 🔍

Saint ID: exploit_info/lotus_notes_inotes_attachment_times_activex
Saint Name: Lotus Notes iNotes Attachment_Times ActiveX Overflow

Qualys ID: 🔍
Qualys Name: 🔍

MetaSploit ID: inotes_dwa85w_bof.rb
MetaSploit Name: IBM Lotus iNotes dwa85W ActiveX Buffer Overflow
MetaSploit File: 🔍

Exploit-DB: 🔍

Threat Intelligenceinfo

Interest: 🔍
Active Actors: 🔍
Active APT Groups: 🔍

Countermeasuresinfo

Recommended: Upgrade
Status: 🔍

0-Day Time: 🔍

Upgrade: Lotus iNotes 8.5.2.0
TippingPoint: 🔍

McAfee IPS: 🔍
McAfee IPS Version: 🔍

PaloAlto IPS: 🔍
Fortigate IPS: 🔍

Timelineinfo

04/04/2012 🔍
05/31/2012 +57 days 🔍
05/31/2012 +0 days 🔍
06/19/2012 +19 days 🔍
06/20/2012 +1 days 🔍
06/20/2012 +0 days 🔍
06/20/2012 +0 days 🔍
03/23/2015 +1006 days 🔍
08/26/2025 +3809 days 🔍

Sourcesinfo

Vendor: ibm.com

Advisory: xforce.iss.net
Researcher: Gaurav Baruah
Status: Confirmed
Confirmation: 🔍

CVE: CVE-2012-2175 (🔍)
GCVE (CVE): GCVE-0-2012-2175
GCVE (VulDB): GCVE-100-61035
X-Force: 75321
SecurityFocus: 53879 - IBM Lotus iNotes Upload Module ActiveX Control Buffer Overflow Vulnerability
Vulnerability Center: 35392 - IBM Lotus iNotes 8.5.x Before 8.5.3 FP2 Remote Code Execution Vulnerability via a Long Argument, Medium

scip Labs: https://www.scip.ch/en/?labs.20161013

Entryinfo

Created: 03/23/2015 16:50
Updated: 08/26/2025 20:25
Changes: 03/23/2015 16:50 (66), 04/13/2017 21:02 (17), 12/04/2021 08:33 (2), 06/13/2024 22:32 (16), 01/02/2025 10:59 (4), 08/26/2025 20:25 (1)
Complete: 🔍
Cache ID: 216::103

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