CVE-2003-0469
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 · uneditedBuffer overflow in the HTML Converter (HTML32.cnv) on various Windows operating systems allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (crash) and possibly execute arbitrary code via cut-and-paste operation, as demonstrated in Internet Explorer 5.0 using a long "align" argument in an HR tag.
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 confidenceBuffer overflow in Windows HTML Converter (HTML32.cnv) allows remote attackers to cause denial of service and potentially execute arbitrary code through a cut-and-paste operation in Internet Explorer 5.0, triggered by an overly long 'align' attribute in an HR tag.
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 dataall versions= 64-bit= r2all versionsall versionsall versions= 4.0all versionsCVSS 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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Check Windows versionRun 'winver' or 'systeminfo' from command prompt to identify the Windows version and build numberAffected if The system is Windows 2000 (all), Windows 2003 Server (64-bit or R2), Windows 98/98se/Me (all), Windows NT 4.0, or Windows XP (all)
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Verify Internet Explorer versionOpen Internet Explorer, click Help > About Internet Explorer, or check the registry key HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer for the Version valueAffected if Internet Explorer version is 5.0.x (specifically IE 5.0)
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Confirm HTML32.cnv converter presenceSearch for the file HTML32.cnv in the Windows system directories, typically found in C:\Windows\System or C:\Windows\System32Affected if The HTML32.cnv file exists on the system (this is the vulnerable component)
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Check if HTML Converter is registeredExamine registry key HKCR\.htm\shell\open\command or look for HTML Converter registration in the registry under HKLM\SOFTWARE\ClassesAffected if HTML32.cnv is registered as the handler for HTML conversion operations in IE
You are affected if your system runs one of the listed vulnerable Windows versions with Internet Explorer 5.0 installed and the HTML32.cnv converter component present and active.
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 2003 affecting older Windows systems and IE 5.0. Remediation involves applying historical Microsoft patches, removing or updating the HTML32.cnv component, and migrating away from vulnerable legacy systems.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2003-0469 — 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-2003-0469 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
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data