CVE-2002-1997
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 · uneditedZoneAlarm Pro 3.0 MailSafe allows remote attackers to bypass filtering and possibly execute arbitrary code via email attachments containing a trailing dot after the file extension.
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 confidenceZoneAlarm Pro 3.0 MailSafe feature, designed to filter dangerous email attachments, can be bypassed by appending a trailing dot to file extensions (e.g., 'malware.exe.'). This allows malicious attachments to slip through the filter and potentially execute arbitrary code on the victim's system.
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= 3.0CVSS 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.
-
Confirm ZoneAlarm Pro 3.0 installationCheck installed programs or look for ZoneAlarm Pro 3.0 in Add/Remove Programs (Windows) or application listing (macOS). Use command: 'reg query HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall /s | findstr ZoneAlarm' or check Program Files for ZoneLabs folder.Affected if ZoneAlarm Pro 3.0 is listed as installed on the system
-
Verify exact product versionLocate the installed version through the program's About section, check the executable file properties (right-click zonelabs.exe or similar in the install directory), or query the Windows registry under HKLM\Software\ZoneLabs or HKCU\Software\ZoneLabs.Affected if The installed version is exactly 3.0 (no other versions are listed as affected in this CVE)
-
Confirm MailSafe feature is enabledOpen the ZoneAlarm Pro interface and navigate to MailSafe settings under Email Protection or Personal Firewall > MailSafe. On Windows, also check registry key: HKLM\Software\ZoneLabs\ZoneAlarm\MailSafe for value Enabled=1.Affected if MailSafe is enabled and actively filtering email attachments
-
Test trailing dot bypass vulnerabilityCreate a test file with a trailing dot extension (e.g., 'test.exe.') and attempt to attach it to an email or simulate the MailSafe scan. Alternatively, review MailSafe logs for entries showing files with trailing dots were allowed through.Affected if Files with trailing dot extensions are not blocked or flagged by MailSafe filter
-
Check for recent security updatesReview ZoneAlarm update history or check the installed patches. Since this is a 2002 vulnerability, verify no additional patches were applied to version 3.0 specifically addressing this issue.Affected if No CVE-2002-1997 specific patch has been applied to the installation
A system is affected if ZoneAlarm Pro version 3.0 is installed with MailSafe feature enabled and files with trailing dot extensions (e.g., 'malware.exe.') are not being blocked or flagged by the email filtering.
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 dataThis is a legacy vulnerability from 2002. Organizations should replace ZoneAlarm Pro 3.0 with current, supported endpoint security solutions and ensure email clients have modern attachment filtering enabled. Users should never open unexpected email attachments.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing1.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,424.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2002-1997 — 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-2002-1997 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
Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.
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.
- 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