# CVE-2000-0168: Denial of service in n/a

> Attackers can cause a denial of service on Windows 9x systems by using pathnames containing DOS device names.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.0 (`AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:N/I:N/A:P`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 12 Jul 2000
- **Updated:** 8 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-vp56-995c-wxvc

## What is CVE-2000-0168?

CVE-2000-0168 is a medium-severity denial of service vulnerability in Microsoft Windows 98, published on 12 Jul 2000. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Microsoft Windows 9x operating systems allow an attacker to cause a denial of service via a pathname that includes file device names, aka the "DOS Device in Path Name" vulnerability.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2000-0168?

It affects 3 products.


Products: Microsoft Windows 95, Microsoft Windows 98, Microsoft Windows 98se.

## How do I fix CVE-2000-0168?

No fix has been published for CVE-2000-0168 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2000-0168 being exploited?

It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2000-0168 exists.

Public exploit code:

- Microsoft Windows Server 2000/95/98/ME/NT 3.5.x/Enterprise Server 4.0/Terminal Server 4.0/Workstation 4.0 Microsoft DoS Device Name - Denial of Service (exploitdb)
- Researched and executed real-world CVE exploits in a controlled sandbox: CVE-2000-0168 DoS on Windows 95, ARP Spoofing with NTLMv2 credential interception on Windows XP, and Shellshock RCE via Burp Suite. All activities performed legally for educational purposes. (github_poc): https://github.com/adk86/CVE-Vulnerability-Research-Exploit-Analysis

## Other vulnerabilities in Microsoft Windows 98

- [CVE-1999-0387](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-1999-0387/): Information disclosure in n/a (high 7.8)
- [CVE-2000-0330](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2000-0330/): Memory corruption in n/a (high 7.6)
- [CVE-1999-0518](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-1999-0518/): Weak cryptography in n/a (high 7.5)
- [CVE-2000-0155](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2000-0155/): Code injection in n/a (high 7.2)
- [CVE-2000-0979](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2000-0979/): Auth bypass in n/a (medium 6.4)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2000-0168 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2000-0168 is a medium-severity denial of service vulnerability in Microsoft Windows 98, published on 12 Jul 2000. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2000-0168 exists.

Affected product: Microsoft Windows 98. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2000-0168/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2000-0168/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2000-0168
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2000-0168
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2000-0168

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2000-0168/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.