Cyber Resilience

CVE-2017-7269

Memory Safety in Microsoft Internet Information Services 6.0

CISA KEVActive ExploitationEUVD ExploitedPublic PoCMemory Safety
Published
27 March 2017
Modified
21 April 2026
KEV Added
03 November 2021
Patch / advisory
View advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 9.8
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS Score 0.99 100.0th percentile
Risk Priority 97 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2017-7269 is a critical-severity Classic Buffer Overflow (CWE-120) vulnerability in Microsoft Internet Information Services. Its CVSS base score is 9.8 (Critical).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploitation for Privilege Escalation (T1068); ranked in the top 0.0% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; CISA has added it to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog; a public proof-of-concept is referenced.

Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary

Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.

CVE-2017-7269 is a buffer overflow vulnerability (CWE-120) in the ScStoragePathFromUrl function within the WebDAV service of Internet Information Services (IIS) 6.0, specifically affecting Microsoft Windows Server 2003 R2. The flaw is triggered by a specially crafted PROPFIND request containing a long "If: <http://" header, which can corrupt memory during path handling.

Remote attackers with network access can exploit the issue without authentication or user interaction to execute arbitrary code on the server, as reflected in its CVSS 3.1 base score of 9.8. The vulnerability was exploited in the wild as early as July or August 2016.

Public references document the issue through vulnerability databases and include proof-of-concept exploit code on GitHub, along with discussion of unofficial micropatch options for unsupported systems; no official vendor patch is referenced for the end-of-life platform.

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

Buffer overflow in the ScStoragePathFromUrl function in the WebDAV service in Internet Information Services (IIS) 6.0 in Microsoft Windows Server 2003 R2 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a long header beginning with "If: <http://" in a PROPFIND…

more

request, as exploited in the wild in July or August 2016.

CWE(s)
CWE-120
KEV Date Added
03 November 2021

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1068 Exploitation for Privilege Escalation Privilege Escalation
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in an attempt to elevate privileges.
attack.mitre.org →
T1190 Exploit Public-Facing Application Initial Access
Adversaries may attempt to exploit a weakness in an Internet-facing host or system to initially access a network.
attack.mitre.org →
T1203 Exploitation for Client Execution Execution
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in client applications to execute code.
attack.mitre.org →
T1210 Exploitation of Remote Services Lateral Movement
Adversaries may exploit remote services to gain unauthorized access to internal systems once inside of a network.
attack.mitre.org →
T1212 Exploitation for Credential Access Credential Access
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in an attempt to collect credentials.
attack.mitre.org →
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2006-2492Same vendor: Microsoftboth on KEV
CVE-2013-1331Same vendor: Microsoftboth on KEV
CVE-2004-0210Same vendor: Microsoftboth on KEV
CVE-2016-0099Same vendor: Microsoftboth on KEV
CVE-2010-2572Same vendor: Microsoftboth on KEV
CVE-2012-4792Same product: Microsoft Windows Server 2003both on KEV
CVE-2010-3962Same product: Microsoft Windows Server 2003both on KEV
CVE-2012-4969Same product: Microsoft Windows Server 2003both on KEV
CVE-2013-1347Same product: Microsoft Windows Server 2003both on KEV
CVE-2010-0249Same product: Microsoft Windows Server 2003both on KEV

Affected Assets

microsoft
internet information services
6.0

Mitigating Controls

Control response

Prevent
Stop it (NIST 800-53)

—

Detect
Catch it (NIST detect / respond)

—

Harden
Shrink the surface (DISA STIG)

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Validate
Prove the fix (OWASP ASVS)
  • V5.2.1

Likely Mitigating Controls AI

Per-CVE control mapping for this CVE has not run yet; the list below is derived from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry.

SC-27 Platform-independent Applications
addresses: CWE-120

Platform-independent managed code eliminates the need for unchecked native buffer copies that are the root cause of classic buffer overflows.

Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

PR.PS-06 mostly match
prevents

Secure development practices directly enforce bounds checking and input validation that prevent classic buffer overflows.

ID.RA-01 partial match
prevents

Vulnerability identification processes such as code review or scanning detect classic buffer overflows before exploitation.

PR.PS-02 partial match
prevents

Routine patching replaces vulnerable code containing unchecked buffer copies with corrected versions.

Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

A.8.28 Secure coding mostly match
prevents

Secure coding directly requires bounds-checked memory operations, addressing the root cause of CWE-120.

A.8.29 Security testing in development and acceptance mostly match
finds

Security testing in development and acceptance can detect buffer overflows through fuzzing and static analysis, though it does not prevent them at the source.

A.8.25 Secure development life cycle partial match
prevents

Secure development life cycle mandates processes that can include input validation and bounds checking to prevent buffer overflows.

A.8.26 Application security requirements partial match
prevents

Application security requirements can specify input-size validation and safe buffer handling to mitigate classic buffer overflows.

A.8.27 Secure system architecture and engineering principles partial match
prevents

Secure system architecture and engineering principles promote defensive coding patterns that reduce the likelihood of unchecked buffer copies.

References