Heads up - Flaw in Windows NT Function Could Allow Denial of Service (823803
Microsoft Security Bulletin MS03-029
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Flaw in Windows Function Could Allow Denial of Service (823803)
Originally posted: July 23, 2003
Summary
Who should read this bulletin: Systems administrators running Microsoft® Windows® NT 4.0 Server
Impact of vulnerability: Denial of service
Maximum Severity Rating: Moderate
Recommendation: Administrators of Windows NT 4.0 servers should consider applying the security patch.
Affected Software:
* Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 Server
* Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 Terminal Server Edition
Not Affected Software:
* Microsoft Windows 2000
* Microsoft Windows XP
* Microsoft Windows Server 2003
End User Bulletin: An end user version of this bulletin is available at:
http://www.microsoft.com/security/se.../ms03-029.asp.
Technical details
Technical description:
A flaw exists in a Windows NT 4.0 Server file management function that can cause a denial of service vulnerability. The flaw results because the affected function can cause memory that it does not own to be freed when a specially crafted request is passed to it. If the application making the request to the function does not carry out any user input validation and allows the specially crafted request to be passed to the function, the function may free memory that it does not own. As a result, the application passing the request could fail.
By default, the affected function is not accessible remotely, however applications installed on the operating system that are available remotely may make use of the affected function. Application servers or Web servers are two such applications that may access the function. Note that Internet Information Server 4.0 (IIS 4.0) does not, by default, make use of the affected function.
Mitigating factors:
* The default installation of Windows NT 4.0 Server is not vulnerable to a remote denial of service. Additional software that makes use of the affected file management function must be installed on the system to expose the vulnerability remotely.
* If the application calling the affected file management function carries out input validation, the specially crafted request may not be passed to the vulnerable function.
* The vulnerability cannot be used to cause Windows NT 4.0 Server itself to fail. Only the application that makes the request may fail.
Severity Rating:
Windows NT 4.0 Server Moderate
Windows NT 4.0 Terminal Server Edition Moderate
The above assessment is based on the types of systems affected by the vulnerability, their typical deployment patterns, and the effect that exploiting the vulnerability would have on them.
Vulnerability identifier: CAN-2003-0525
Tested Versions:
Microsoft tested Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 Server, Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 to assess whether they are affected by these vulnerabilities. Previous versions are no longer supported, and may or may not be affected by these vulnerabilities.
Frequently asked questions
What’s the scope of the vulnerability?
This is a denial of service vulnerability. An attacker who successfully exploited the vulnerability could cause an application running on a Windows NT 4.0 Server system to fail. By default the vulnerable function cannot be accessed remotely, however, additional software that may have been in installed on the server may make the function accessible remotely.
From http://www.microsoft.com/technet/tre...n/MS03-029.asp
