Windows 2000Operating system · Microsoft

CVE-2001-0238

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v2.0 Published 2001-07-02
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
84/100
Remediation priority · High
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

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 · unedited
Microsoft Data Access Component Internet Publishing Provider 8.103.2519.0 and earlier allows remote attackers to bypass Security Zone restrictions via WebDAV requests.

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 confidence

Microsoft Data Access Component Internet Publishing Provider versions 8.103.2519.0 and earlier contains a flaw where WebDAV requests can bypass Security Zone restrictions, potentially allowing remote attackers to access resources or execute operations that should be restricted by the security model.

MitigationApply relevant Microsoft patches for MDAC, or migrate to supported versions of Windows and related components. If systems cannot be patched, isolate them via network segmentation and disable WebDAV where not required.

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
Windows 2000Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows 95Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows 98Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows 98seOperating system
Affected:all versions
Windows MeOperating system
Affected:all versions
Windows NtOperating system
Affected:= 4.0

CVSS 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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify Windows version
    Run 'winver' or check system properties to determine the Windows version. Alternatively, run 'systeminfo | findstr /B /C:"OS Name" /C:"OS Version"' from command prompt.
    Affected if The system runs Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows 98se, Windows Me, Windows NT 4.0, or Windows 2000 (all versions of these are affected).
  2. Verify MDAC installation
    Check the registry key HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\DataAccess for the Version value, or locate mdac_typ.exe or msdadc.dll on the system.
    Affected if MDAC versions 8.103.2519.0 or earlier are installed (or MDAC version cannot be determined but the Windows version is affected).
  3. Check for Internet Publishing Provider DLL
    Locate the file msdapext.dll (typically in C:\Program Files\Common Files\Microsoft Shared\Web Server Extensions\ or system directory) and check its file version properties.
    Affected if The msdapext.dll file exists with version 8.103.2519.0 or earlier, indicating the vulnerable component is present.
  4. Determine if WebDAV client is enabled
    On Windows 2000, check 'Services' snap-in for 'WebClient' service status, or check registry key HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\WebClient for Start value.
    Affected if The WebClient service is running (Start value is 2) or set to auto-start, meaning WebDAV client functionality is available for the bypass to apply.

You are affected if your system runs any Windows 95/98/98se/Me/NT 4.0/2000 version AND has MDAC with the Internet Publishing Provider component (msdapext.dll) installed AND WebDAV client functionality is enabled.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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 data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply relevant Microsoft patches for MDAC, or migrate to supported versions of Windows and related components. If systems cannot be patched, isolate them via network segmentation and disable WebDAV where not required.

Fix this in Windows 2000 Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,600
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Scan for this in your stack

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dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2001-0238 — 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 sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2001-0238 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • 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
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data