CVE-2004-0894
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 · uneditedLSASS (Local Security Authority Subsystem Service) of Windows 2000 Server and Windows Server 2003 does not properly validate connection information, which allows local users to gain privileges via a specially-designed program.
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 confidenceLSASS (Local Security Authority Subsystem Service) in Windows 2000 Server and Windows Server 2003 contains a local privilege escalation vulnerability due to improper validation of connection information. A specially-crafted local program can exploit this flaw to elevate privileges to SYSTEM level, bypassing security boundaries.
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= datacenter_64-bit= enterprise= enterprise_64-bit= r2= standard= weball 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
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Complete
- Integrity
- Complete
- Availability
- Complete
AV:L/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify the Windows versionRun 'winver' or check System Properties to confirm the exact Windows edition and versionAffected if The OS is Windows 2000 (any version), Windows XP (any version), or Windows Server 2003 (datacenter 64-bit, enterprise, enterprise 64-bit, R2, standard, or web edition)
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Confirm LSASS service presenceOpen Services console (services.msc) and locate 'Local Security Authority Subsystem Service' (LSASS), or run 'sc query lsass' from command promptAffected if The LSASS service exists and is running (this is required for the vulnerability to be exploitable)
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Check for security updatesOpen Control Panel > Add or Remove Programs > Show updates, or run 'wmic qfe list' to list installed hotfixes. Look for any security updates related to LSASS or privilege escalation from around 2004Affected if No security update addressing this LSASS validation flaw has been installed, leaving the system vulnerable
A system is affected if it runs an unpatched Windows 2000, Windows XP, or Windows Server 2003 version and has the LSASS service present, allowing a local attacker to escalate privileges to SYSTEM level.
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 dataApply Microsoft security patches for CVE-2004-0894. Note that Windows 2000 Server and Windows Server 2003 are end-of-life; consider migrating to supported OS versions if patches are unavailable.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $5,120.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2004-0894 — 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-2004-0894 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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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