# CVE-2012-0290: Auth bypass in n/a

> Remote attackers can hijack active sessions in Symantec pcAnywhere after abnormal termination, gaining unauthorized access to the client system.

- **Severity:** Critical 10.0 (`AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 6 Feb 2012
- **Updated:** 6 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-w6cw-jfxj-m3cm

## What is CVE-2012-0290?

CVE-2012-0290 is a critical authentication bypass vulnerability in n/a, published on 6 Feb 2012. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Symantec pcAnywhere through 12.5.3, Altiris IT Management Suite pcAnywhere Solution 7.0 (aka 12.5.x) and 7.1 (aka 12.6.x), Altiris Client Management Suite pcAnywhere Solution 7.0 (aka 12.5.x) and 7.1 (aka 12.6.x), and Altiris Deployment Solution Remote pcAnywhere Solution 7.1 (aka 12.5.x and 12.6.x) do not properly handle the client state after abnormal termination of a remote session, which allows remote attackers to obtain access to the client by leveraging an "open client session."

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2012-0290?

It affects 3 products.


Products: Symantec Altiris Client Management Suite Pcanywhere Solution, Symantec Altiris Deployment Solution Remote Pcanywhere Solution, Symantec Pcanywhere.

## How do I fix CVE-2012-0290?

No fix has been published for CVE-2012-0290 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2012-0290 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2012-0290 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in n/a

- [CVE-2012-0292](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2012-0292/): Denial of service in n/a (medium 5.0)
- [CVE-2012-0291](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2012-0291/): Denial of service in n/a (medium 5.0)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2012-0290 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2012-0290 is a critical authentication bypass vulnerability in n/a, published on 6 Feb 2012. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2012-0290 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-2012-0290/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2012-0290/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2012-0290
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2012-0290
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2012-0290

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2012-0290/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.