CVE-2002-1182 in IIS
Summary
by MITRE
IIS 5.0 and 5.1 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (crash) via malformed WebDAV requests that cause a large amount of memory to be assigned.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/07/2025
The vulnerability described in CVE-2002-1182 represents a critical denial of service flaw affecting Microsoft Internet Information Services versions 5.0 and 5.1. This vulnerability specifically targets the WebDAV (Web Distributed Authoring and Versioning) protocol implementation within IIS, which was widely deployed in enterprise environments during the early 2000s. The flaw manifests when the web server receives malformed WebDAV requests that trigger excessive memory allocation behavior, ultimately leading to system instability and service disruption. This vulnerability falls under the category of memory corruption issues and can be classified as a CWE-129 weakness, which represents an insufficient boundary checking vulnerability that allows for improper memory handling.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs through carefully crafted WebDAV requests that manipulate the memory allocation mechanisms within IIS 5.0 and 5.1. When the web server processes these malformed requests, it allocates excessive memory resources without proper validation, causing the server to consume all available memory resources and eventually crash or become unresponsive. The flaw exploits the lack of proper input validation within the WebDAV processing module, which does not adequately sanitize or limit the memory allocation parameters in response to client requests. This type of vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1499.004, which involves network denial of service attacks through resource exhaustion, and demonstrates how improper memory management can lead to system instability.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple service disruption, as it can affect entire enterprise web infrastructure and compromise business continuity. Organizations running IIS 5.0 and 5.1 servers were particularly vulnerable since these versions were still widely used in corporate environments, and the vulnerability could be exploited by remote attackers without requiring authentication or specialized access privileges. The attack vector is particularly dangerous because it can be executed over the network without user interaction, making it an attractive target for automated exploitation tools. This vulnerability represents a classic example of how protocol implementation flaws can be leveraged to cause system-wide disruption, with potential cascading effects on dependent services and applications that rely on the affected web servers for functionality.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability primarily focus on immediate patch deployment and configuration hardening measures. Microsoft released security updates specifically addressing this vulnerability in subsequent service packs and security bulletins, which should be implemented immediately across all affected systems. Organizations should also consider implementing network segmentation and access controls to limit exposure to potentially malicious WebDAV requests, while disabling WebDAV functionality entirely if it is not required for business operations. Additional protective measures include implementing intrusion detection systems that can identify and block malformed WebDAV traffic patterns, as well as monitoring memory usage patterns to detect early signs of exploitation attempts. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of proper input validation and memory management in web server implementations, and serves as a reminder of the critical need for regular security updates and comprehensive vulnerability management programs.