# CVE-2011-3479: Privilege escalation in n/a

> Local attackers can escalate privileges by modifying world-writable installation files in Symantec pcAnywhere.

- **Severity:** Medium 6.8 (`AV:L/AC:L/Au:S/C:C/I:C/A:C`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 25 Jan 2012
- **Updated:** 6 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-cwg9-p6fm-4cj6

## What is CVE-2011-3479?

CVE-2011-3479 is a medium-severity vulnerability in n/a, published on 25 Jan 2012. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Symantec pcAnywhere 12.5.x through 12.5.3, and IT Management Suite pcAnywhere Solution 7.0 (aka 12.5.x) and 7.1 (aka 12.6.x), uses world-writable permissions for product-installation files, which allows local users to gain privileges by modifying a file.

Weakness: CWE-264

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2011-3479?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Symantec Pcanywhere.

## How do I fix CVE-2011-3479?

No fix has been published for CVE-2011-3479 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2011-3479 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2011-3479 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Public exploit code:

- Symantec pcAnywhere - Insecure File Permissions Privilege Escalation (exploitdb)

## Other vulnerabilities in n/a

- [CVE-2011-3478](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2011-3478/): Auth bypass in n/a (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2000-0300](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2000-0300/): Weak cryptography in n/a (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2005-3934](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2005-3934/): Memory corruption in n/a (high 7.8)
- [CVE-2006-3784](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2006-3784/): Privilege escalation in n/a (high 7.2)
- [CVE-2005-1970](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2005-1970/): Command injection in n/a (high 7.2)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2011-3479 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2011-3479 is a medium-severity vulnerability in n/a, published on 25 Jan 2012. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2011-3479 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: n/a. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2011-3479/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2011-3479/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2011-3479
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2011-3479
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2011-3479

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2011-3479/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.