Microsoft Windows NT 4.0/2000 Terminal Server RDP Packet memory leak

CVSS Meta Temp Score
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CTI Interest Score
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5.1$0-$5k0.00

Summaryinfo

A vulnerability marked as problematic has been reported in Microsoft Windows NT 4.0/2000. Affected by this vulnerability is an unknown functionality of the component Terminal Server. The manipulation as part of RDP Packet leads to memory leak. This vulnerability is uniquely identified as CVE-2001-0540. No exploit exists. It is recommended to apply a patch to fix this issue.

Detailsinfo

A vulnerability was found in Microsoft Windows NT 4.0/2000 (Operating System). It has been rated as problematic. This issue affects an unknown code of the component Terminal Server. The manipulation as part of a RDP Packet leads to a memory leak vulnerability. Using CWE to declare the problem leads to CWE-401. The product does not sufficiently track and release allocated memory after it has been used, which slowly consumes remaining memory. Impacted is availability. The summary by CVE is:

Memory leak in Terminal servers in Windows NT and Windows 2000 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (memory exhaustion) via a large number of malformed Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) requests to port 3389.

The weakness was disclosed 10/30/2001 by Peter Gründl with Microsoft as MS01-040 as confirmed bulletin (Technet). It is possible to read the advisory at microsoft.com. The identification of this vulnerability is CVE-2001-0540. The exploitation is known to be easy. The attack may be initiated remotely. No form of authentication is needed for a successful exploitation. The technical details are unknown and an exploit is not publicly available.

The commercial vulnerability scanner Qualys is able to test this issue with plugin 90057 (Microsoft Windows Terminal Server Service (RDP Protocol) Denial of Service Vulnerability (MS01-040)).

Applying the patch MS01-040 is able to eliminate this problem. The bugfix is ready for download at microsoft.com.Addressing this vulnerability is possible by firewalling 3389. The best possible mitigation is suggested to be patching the affected component. Attack attempts may be identified with Snort ID 1447.

The vulnerability is also documented in the databases at X-Force (6912), SecurityFocus (BID 3099†) and Vulnerability Center (SBV-1153†). Be aware that VulDB is the high quality source for vulnerability data.

Productinfo

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CPE 2.3info

CPE 2.2info

CVSSv4info

VulDB Vector: 🔍
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

CVSSv3info

VulDB Meta Base Score: 5.3
VulDB Meta Temp Score: 5.1

VulDB Base Score: 5.3
VulDB Temp Score: 5.1
VulDB Vector: 🔍
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

CVSSv2info

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VulDB Base Score: 🔍
VulDB Temp Score: 🔍
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

NVD Base Score: 🔍

Exploitinginfo

Class: Memory leak
CWE: CWE-401 / CWE-404
CAPEC: 🔍
ATT&CK: 🔍

Physical: No
Local: No
Remote: Yes

Availability: 🔍
Status: Not defined

EPSS Score: 🔍
EPSS Percentile: 🔍

Price Prediction: 🔍
Current Price Estimation: 🔍

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Qualys ID: 🔍
Qualys Name: 🔍

Threat Intelligenceinfo

Interest: 🔍
Active Actors: 🔍
Active APT Groups: 🔍

Countermeasuresinfo

Recommended: Patch
Status: 🔍

0-Day Time: 🔍

Patch: MS01-040
Firewalling: 🔍

Snort ID: 1447
Snort Message: POLICY-OTHER Microsoft Windows Terminal server RDP attempt
Snort Class: 🔍

Suricata ID: 2101447
Suricata Class: 🔍
Suricata Message: 🔍
SourceFire IPS: 🔍

Timelineinfo

07/25/2001 🔍
10/30/2001 +97 days 🔍
10/30/2001 +0 days 🔍
10/30/2001 +0 days 🔍
05/05/2003 +552 days 🔍
07/09/2014 +4083 days 🔍
10/05/2025 +4106 days 🔍

Sourcesinfo

Vendor: microsoft.com
Product: microsoft.com

Advisory: MS01-040
Researcher: Peter Gründl
Organization: Microsoft
Status: Confirmed

CVE: CVE-2001-0540 (🔍)
GCVE (CVE): GCVE-0-2001-0540
GCVE (VulDB): GCVE-100-17567
X-Force: 6912 - Microsoft Windows NT and 2000 Terminal Server RDP memory leak denial of service
SecurityFocus: 3099 - Microsoft Windows Terminal Server Service DoS Vulnerability
Vulnerability Center: 1153 - [MS01-040] DoS in Microsoft Windows NT/2000 Terminal Service via Malformed RDP Requests, High

Entryinfo

Created: 07/09/2014 22:45
Updated: 10/05/2025 23:57
Changes: 07/09/2014 22:45 (74), 05/09/2019 20:10 (1), 10/05/2025 23:57 (18)
Complete: 🔍
Cache ID: 216::103

Be aware that VulDB is the high quality source for vulnerability data.

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