CVE-2000-0538 in Coldfusion Server
Summary
by MITRE
ColdFusion Administrator for ColdFusion 4.5.1 and earlier allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service via a long login password.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/14/2025
The vulnerability described in CVE-2000-0538 represents a classic buffer overflow condition affecting the ColdFusion Administrator component of Adobe ColdFusion versions 4.5.1 and earlier. This issue manifests when the system processes authentication requests with excessively long password inputs, creating a scenario where the application fails to properly validate input length before processing user credentials. The flaw exists within the authentication handling mechanism of the ColdFusion Administrator interface, which is designed to manage system configuration and user access controls. When a remote attacker submits a login request containing an unusually long password string, the application's internal buffer handling routines become overwhelmed, leading to system instability and potential service disruption.
This vulnerability directly maps to CWE-121, which describes buffer overflow conditions where insufficient bounds checking occurs during buffer manipulation operations. The technical implementation flaw stems from inadequate input validation within the ColdFusion authentication subsystem, where password length restrictions are not properly enforced before the input is processed through the application's internal buffers. The vulnerability operates at the application layer and requires network access to exploit, making it a remote attack vector that can be leveraged by unauthorized users without requiring physical access to the system. The specific nature of the flaw indicates that the application uses fixed-size buffers to store password information without proper bounds checking, creating an opportunity for attackers to overwrite adjacent memory locations.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple denial of service conditions, as it can be exploited to disrupt critical business operations that depend on ColdFusion applications. Organizations utilizing affected versions of ColdFusion may experience complete service interruption when the vulnerability is successfully exploited, potentially affecting web applications, database connections, and administrative access to the system. The attack can be executed without requiring authentication credentials, making it particularly dangerous as any remote user can attempt to exploit the vulnerability. This creates a significant risk for organizations that have not implemented proper network segmentation or access controls to limit exposure to such attacks, particularly in environments where ColdFusion Administrator interfaces are accessible from untrusted networks.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including applying the vendor-provided patches and updates that address this specific buffer overflow condition in ColdFusion versions 4.5.1 and earlier. Network-level protections such as firewalls and access control lists should be configured to restrict access to ColdFusion Administrator interfaces from untrusted networks, implementing the principle of least privilege for administrative access. System administrators should also consider implementing input validation mechanisms that enforce maximum password length limits at the application level, preventing long input strings from being processed by vulnerable components. Additionally, monitoring and logging should be enhanced to detect unusual authentication patterns or attempts that may indicate exploitation of this vulnerability, supporting incident response capabilities and compliance with security standards such as those outlined in the NIST Cybersecurity Framework and ISO 27001 requirements for secure system administration and access control. The vulnerability also aligns with ATT&CK technique T1499, which covers network denial of service attacks, and represents a critical weakness in the application's defensive posture against remote exploitation attempts.