dbcve.org
Darwin Streaming ServerApplication · Apple

CVE-2003-0421

HIGH · 10.0 CVSS v2.0 Published 2003-08-27
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
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
Apple QuickTime / Darwin Streaming Server before 4.1.3f allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (crash) via an MS-DOS device name (e.g. AUX) in a request to HTTP port 1220, a different vulnerability than CVE-2003-0502.

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

The vulnerability exists in Apple QuickTime and Darwin Streaming Server versions prior to 4.1.3f. Remote attackers can send MS-DOS device names (such as AUX, CON, PRN, etc.) as part of a request to HTTP port 1220, causing the server to crash due to improper handling of these reserved device names.

MitigationUpgrade to Darwin Streaming Server version 4.1.3f or later, or apply vendor-supplied patches. If the software cannot be upgraded, restrict network access to port 1220 to trusted sources only.

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
Darwin Streaming ServerApplication
Affected:= 4.1.3

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
Complete
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete

AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C

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. Confirm Darwin Streaming Server is installed
    Run 'dss -v' or 'DarwinStreamingServer -v' from command line, or check installed packages via system package manager (e.g., 'rpm -qa | grep -i darwin' or 'dpkg -l | grep -i darwin')
    Affected if Darwin Streaming Server is present on the system
  2. Determine the installed version
    Execute 'dss -v' or check the binary version. Compare the version number to the affected range (versions prior to 4.1.3f, specifically version 4.1.3)
    Affected if Version is 4.1.3 and has not been patched to 4.1.3f or later
  3. Verify if HTTP port 1220 is listening
    Run 'netstat -an | grep 1220' or 'ss -tlnp | grep 1220' to check if port 1220 is open and listening for connections
    Affected if Port 1220 is open and accepting connections, exposing the service to network requests
  4. Check network accessibility of port 1220
    Use 'nmap -p 1220 <your-ip>' or 'telnet <your-ip> 1220' from an external host to determine if the port is reachable from the network
    Affected if Port 1220 is reachable from untrusted network segments

The environment is affected if Darwin Streaming Server version 4.1.3 is installed AND port 1220 is exposed to the network where remote attackers could send MS-DOS device names to cause a denial of service.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Upgrade to Darwin Streaming Server version 4.1.3f or later, or apply vendor-supplied patches. If the software cannot be upgraded, restrict network access to port 1220 to trusted sources only.

Recommended fix High confidence

Darwin Streaming Server 4.1.3f or later

  1. 1. Identify the current Darwin Streaming Server version installed using 'dss -v' or checking the application bundle
  2. 2. Download Darwin Streaming Server version 4.1.3f or later from the official Apple or open source archives
  3. 3. Stop the Darwin Streaming Server service using 'killall DarwinStreamingServer' or the appropriate service management command
  4. 4. Back up the current installation directory (typically /usr/local/DarwinStreamingServer) and configuration files
  5. 5. Install the new version by extracting and running the installer: './DarwinStreamingServer-4.1.3f-Linux.bin' or equivalent for your platform
  6. 6. Restore any custom configurations from the backup if needed
  7. 7. Start the Darwin Streaming Server service
  8. 8. Verify the server is running and test with a normal request to confirm functionality
Caveat This is a minor version upgrade within the 4.x branch; configuration compatibility is expected. However, test in a non-production environment first as with any server update.

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Darwin Streaming Server Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
7.0 hours of engineering $1,240
Get help mitigating

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,984.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2003-0421 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

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-2003-0421 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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.

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