CVE-1999-0455
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedThe Expression Evaluator sample application in ColdFusion allows remote attackers to read or delete files on the server via exprcalc.cfm, which does not restrict access to the server properly.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · moderate confidenceThe Expression Evaluator sample application (exprcalc.cfm) in ColdFusion contains a path traversal vulnerability allowing remote attackers to read or delete arbitrary files on the server due to insufficient access controls on the expression evaluation functionality.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data= 4.0CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Partial
- Integrity
- Partial
- Availability
- Partial
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Confirm ColdFusion Server versionCheck the installed ColdFusion Server version by looking for version files in the ColdFusion installation directory, or use the ColdFusion Administrator interface to view server informationAffected if The installed version is ColdFusion Server 4.0
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Locate exprcalc.cfm sample fileSearch for the exprcalc.cfm file in the web root or sample applications directory of the ColdFusion installation. Common paths include /cfide/ or /samples/ directoriesAffected if The exprcalc.cfm file exists on the server in a publicly accessible web directory
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Check sample applications directoryExamine the samples or examples directory within the ColdFusion installation for the presence of exprcalc.cfm and related expression evaluator filesAffected if The Expression Evaluator sample application files are present on the server
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Test file access via path traversalIf exprcalc.cfm is accessible, attempt to access the file with a path traversal request (for example, a URL parameter that attempts to read a file outside the web root). Only perform this on systems you are authorized to testAffected if The exprcalc.cfm application processes file path requests without proper validation and returns content from arbitrary file system locations
The server is affected if ColdFusion Server 4.0 is installed AND the exprcalc.cfm sample application file exists in a web-accessible location with its path traversal functionality enabled and unprotected.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataRemove or disable the exprcalc.cfm sample application from production ColdFusion servers, or implement proper authentication and input validation to restrict file system access.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing1.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-1999-0455 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-1999-0455 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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