# CVE-2019-12759: Privilege escalation in Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager (SEPM), Symantec Mail Security for MS Exchange (SMSMSE)

> Attackers can exploit a privilege escalation flaw in Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager and Mail Security to gain elevated access to protected resources.

- **Severity:** High 7.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **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:** 15 Nov 2019
- **Updated:** 4 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-gj72-gg96-4j3w

## What is CVE-2019-12759?

CVE-2019-12759 is a high-severity vulnerability in Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager (SEPM), Symantec Mail Security for MS Exchange (SMSMSE), published on 15 Nov 2019. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager (SEPM) and Symantec Mail Security for MS Exchange (SMSMSE), prior to versions 14.2 RU2 and 7.5.x respectively, may be susceptible to a privilege escalation vulnerability, which is a type of issue whereby an attacker may attempt to compromise the software application to gain elevated access to resources that are normally protected from an application or user.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2019-12759?

It affects 2 products.


Products: Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager, Symantec Mail Security.

## How do I fix CVE-2019-12759?

No fix has been published for CVE-2019-12759 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2019-12759 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2019-12759 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager (SEPM), Symantec Mail Security for MS Exchange (SMSMSE)

- [CVE-2016-3648](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2016-3648/): Security feature bypass in n/a (high 8.8)
- [CVE-2016-3650](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2016-3650/): Information disclosure in n/a (high 8.8)
- [CVE-2015-8153](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-8153/): SQL injection in n/a (high 8.8)
- [CVE-2015-8154](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-8154/): Privilege escalation in n/a (high 8.8)
- [CVE-2015-6555](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-6555/): Code injection in n/a (high 8.5)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2019-12759 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2019-12759 is a high-severity vulnerability in Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager (SEPM), Symantec Mail Security for MS Exchange (SMSMSE), published on 15 Nov 2019. 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-2019-12759 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager (SEPM), Symantec Mail Security for MS Exchange (SMSMSE). 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-2019-12759/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-12759/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2019-12759
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2019-12759
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2019-12759

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From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-12759/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.