CVE-1999-0736
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 showcode.asp sample file in IIS and Site Server allows remote attackers to read arbitrary files.
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 · high confidenceThe showcode.asp sample file in IIS and Site Server contains a path traversal vulnerability that allows remote attackers to read arbitrary files on the system by manipulating file path parameters. This is a classic example of insufficient input validation in a sample script left installed on production servers.
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
- None
- Availability
- None
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:N/A:N
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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Verify IIS 4.0 is installedCheck the Windows system for Internet Information Server 4.0 by reviewing installed programs, checking the IIS metabase via IIS Manager, or running 'inetmgr' to access the IIS management console and confirm the version.Affected if IIS version 4.0 is installed and running
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Locate showcode.asp on the systemSearch for showcode.asp in typical IIS sample script directories, commonly found under the IIS installation path such as C:\Inetpub\iissamples\sdk\asp\ or similar iissamples subdirectories.Affected if The showcode.asp file exists in any IIS sample directory on the server
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Confirm the file is accessible via webAttempt to access the file remotely or locally by making an HTTP request to http://localhost/iissamples/sdk/asp/showcode.asp or the equivalent path if different, and verify the server responds with the file content rather than a 404 error.Affected if The showcode.asp file is accessible over HTTP and returns a 200 OK response
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Test the path traversal vulnerabilitySend a crafted request to showcode.asp with a path parameter attempting to access a system file, such as requesting a URL like http://localhost/iissamples/sdk/asp/showcode.asp?source=/../../../../winnt/repair/sam._ or similar path traversal pattern, and observe if file contents are returned.Affected if The server returns content from files outside the intended directory, confirming the path traversal is exploitable
The environment is affected if IIS 4.0 is running, showcode.asp exists in the iissamples directory, and the file is accessible via HTTP with the path traversal vulnerability functioning.
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 delete the showcode.asp file and all other sample files from production IIS servers. If the files cannot be removed, disable the parent directory or restrict script execution permissions for that directory through IIS management console.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation1.0 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-1999-0736 — 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-1999-0736 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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