Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
This is a legacy cross-site scripting issue in Microsoft IIS redirection handling. A remote attacker could make a user see attacker-controlled script in a redirect message from an affected server. The main business concern is any still-running IIS 4.0, 5.0, or 5.1 system, especially if internet-facing.
Executive priority
Treat as a legacy exposure cleanup item. Escalate quickly if affected IIS versions are internet-facing or tied to sensitive workflows. Without active exploitation evidence or CVSS in the provided sources, priority depends mainly on whether obsolete IIS still exists.
Technical view
CVE-2003-0223 is an XSS flaw in the ASP function used for redirection in Microsoft IIS 4.0, 5.0, and 5.1. The source description says a remote attacker can embed a URL containing script in a redirection message. No CVSS, CWE, or detailed affected CPE data is provided in the bundle.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely in legacy Microsoft IIS 4.0, 5.0, or 5.1 deployments, including old ASP applications or forgotten servers. Modern IIS versions are not identified as affected in the provided sources.
Exploitation context
The bundle does not show CISA KEV listing or cited evidence of active exploitation. The described attack is remote but appears user-interaction dependent because it involves a URL that causes script to appear in a redirection message.
Researcher notes
Evidence is sparse: the source bundle identifies the flaw, affected IIS versions, Microsoft bulletin MS03-018, and an OVAL definition. It does not provide CVSS, CWE mapping, exploit telemetry, or detailed remediation text beyond the vendor advisory reference.
Mitigation direction
- Review Microsoft MS03-018 and apply the vendor security update where applicable.
- Identify and retire unsupported IIS 4.0, 5.0, and 5.1 systems.
- Restrict public access to legacy IIS servers until remediation is confirmed.
- Check vendor guidance before applying compensating controls not named in the sources.
Validation and detection
- Inventory IIS versions and confirm whether 4.0, 5.0, or 5.1 remains deployed.
- Check patch records against Microsoft MS03-018 for each affected host.
- Review web exposure for legacy ASP applications using redirection behavior.
- Use the referenced OVAL definition where compatible with your assessment tooling.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CVE-2003-0223 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- Unknown
- CVSS
- Not scored
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
CVSS and timeline data
No CVSS vectors or timeline events were available in the normalized CVE source material.
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- MS03-018CVE reference · vendor-advisory, x_refsource_MS
- oval:org.mitre.oval:def:66CVE reference · vdb-entry, signature
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.