CVE-2012-1443
CWE-264Published: March 21, 2012· Updated: Jun 16, 2026
Official Description
The RAR file parser in ClamAV 0.96.4, Rising Antivirus 22.83.00.03, Quick Heal (aka Cat QuickHeal) 11.00, G Data AntiVirus 21, AVEngine 20101.3.0.103 in Symantec Endpoint Protection 11, Command Antivirus 5.2.11.5, Ikarus Virus Utilities T3 Command Line Scanner 1.1.97.0, Emsisoft Anti-Malware 5.1.0.1, PC Tools AntiVirus 7.0.3.5, F-Prot Antivirus 4.6.2.117, VirusBuster 13.6.151.0, Fortinet Antivirus 4.2.254.0, Antiy Labs AVL SDK 2.0.3.7, K7 AntiVirus 9.77.3565, Trend Micro HouseCall 9.120.0.1004, Kaspersky Anti-Virus 7.0.0.125, Jiangmin Antivirus 13.0.900, Antimalware Engine 1.1.6402.0 in Microsoft Security Essentials 2.0, Sophos Anti-Virus 4.61.0, NOD32 Antivirus 5795, Avira AntiVir 7.11.1.163, Norman Antivirus 6.06.12, McAfee Anti-Virus Scanning Engine 5.400.0.1158, Panda Antivirus 10.0.2.7, McAfee Gateway (formerly Webwasher) 2010.1C, Trend Micro AntiVirus 9.120.0.1004, Comodo Antivirus 7424, Bitdefender 7.2, eSafe 7.0.17.0, F-Secure Anti-Virus 9.0.16160.0, nProtect Anti-Virus 2011-01-17.01, AhnLab V3 Internet Security 2011.01.18.00, AVG Anti-Virus 10.0.0.1190, avast! Antivirus 4.8.1351.0 and 5.0.677.0, and VBA32 3.12.14.2 allows user-assisted remote attackers to bypass malware detection via a RAR file with an initial MZ character sequence. NOTE: this may later be SPLIT into multiple CVEs if additional information is published showing that the error occurred independently in different RAR parser implementations.
Technical Analysis
CVE-2012-1443 can be exploited remotely over the network without requiring physical or adjacent access, significantly expanding the attack surface for threat actors.
Exploitation requires some privileges, which limits the exposure to scenarios where an attacker has already gained initial access.
CVSS v3.1 Vector Breakdown
Affected Vendors & Products
Exploit & PoC Resources
All References (34)
Quick Facts
Related CVEs (CWE-264)
Recommended Actions
- →Apply vendor patches immediately
- →Monitor CVE-2012-1443 in threat intel feeds
- →Review IDS/IPS signatures for exploitation attempts