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Internet Information ServicesApplication · Microsoft

CVE-2010-2730

HIGH · 9.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2010-09-15
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
Buffer overflow in Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS) 7.5, when FastCGI is enabled, allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via crafted headers in a request, aka "Request Header Buffer Overflow Vulnerability."

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

Buffer overflow vulnerability in Microsoft IIS 7.5 FastCGI module allows remote code execution via specially crafted HTTP request headers that overflow an internal buffer.

MitigationApply Microsoft security update MS10-065, disable FastCGI if unused, or implement request header size limits at network edge (WAF/load balancer).

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
Internet Information ServicesApplication
Affected:= 7.5

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
M
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Complete
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete

AV:N/AC:M/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. Verify IIS version is 7.5
    Open Command Prompt and run: %SystemRoot%\System32\inetsrv\inetsrv\iisversion.vbs (or check HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\InetMgr\Version in registry, or run: appcmd list config -section:system.webServer/serverRuntime to see version info)
    Affected if The installed version is Microsoft IIS 7.5 exactly (not earlier like 7.0 or later like 8.0)
  2. Confirm FastCGI module is installed
    Run: %SystemRoot%\system32\inetsrv\appcmd list module in an elevated command prompt, or open IIS Manager, click on the server node, and check 'Modules' for 'FastCgiModule' in the list
    Affected if FastCgiModule appears in the loaded modules list (vulnerability only applies when FastCGI is enabled)
  3. Check if FastCGI handler mapping exists
    Run: %SystemRoot%\system32\inetsrv\appcmd list config -section:system.webServer/handlers | findstr /i "fastcgi" or inspect the handlers section in %SystemRoot%\System32\inetsrv\config\applicationHost.config for a FastCGI handler entry
    Affected if A FastCGI handler mapping is configured for any application (vulnerability requires an active FastCGI handler)
  4. Inspect FastCGI request limits configuration
    Examine %SystemRoot%\System32\inetsrv\config\applicationHost.config for the <fastCgi> section, specifically looking for the requestBuffer and other buffer-related attributes, or run: appcmd list config -section:system.webServer/fastCgi
    Affected if No explicit header size limits are configured in the FastCGI settings (default unlimited buffer may allow overflow)

Your environment is affected if you are running IIS 7.5 with the FastCGI module loaded and an active FastCGI handler mapping configured, regardless of header limit settings (the vulnerability is in the module itself).

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

Apply Microsoft security update MS10-065, disable FastCGI if unused, or implement request header size limits at network edge (WAF/load balancer).

Recommended fix High confidence

Apply MS10-065 security update (KB2267963) for IIS 7.5

  1. Apply Microsoft Security Bulletin MS10-065 (KB2267963) which addresses the FastCGI buffer overflow vulnerability in IIS 7.5
  2. For Windows Vista/7 systems: Install update KB2267963 from Windows Update or Microsoft Download Center
  3. For Windows Server 2008/2008 R2 systems: Install update KB2267963 from Windows Update or Microsoft Download Center
  4. After applying the patch, verify FastCGI module is properly configured and restart IIS services
  5. Confirm the patch is installed by checking Windows Update history or reviewing installed updates
Caveat This is a security patch for a 2010 vulnerability; ensure compatibility with dependent applications before deployment

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

Fix this in Internet Information Services 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
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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-2010-2730 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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
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