CVE-1999-0606 is a medium-severity vulnerability affecting the EZMall 2000 shopping cart CGI program, specifically the "mall2000.cgi" script. The vulnerability arises from an incorrect configuration that could lead to the disclosure of private information. This is classified under CWE-200, which refers to information exposure vulnerabilities. The vulnerability does not require authentication (Au:N) and can be exploited remotely over the network (AV:N) with low attack complexity (AC:L). The impact is limited to confidentiality (C:P) with no impact on integrity or availability (I:N/A:N). Since the vulnerability is due to misconfiguration rather than a software flaw, no patch is available. The disclosure of private information could include sensitive customer data or internal system details, which attackers could leverage for further attacks or identity theft. Given the age of the software (published in 1999) and the lack of known exploits in the wild, this vulnerability is likely less relevant today but could still pose risks in legacy systems that remain operational without proper configuration review or updates.

For European organizations, the impact of this vulnerability primarily concerns the confidentiality of customer and business data handled by the EZMall 2000 shopping cart system. Exposure of private information could lead to privacy violations under GDPR, resulting in legal and financial penalties. Additionally, leaked information might facilitate targeted phishing or social engineering attacks. Although the vulnerability does not affect system integrity or availability, the reputational damage and compliance risks could be significant, especially for e-commerce businesses handling sensitive personal data. Organizations relying on legacy e-commerce platforms without proper configuration management are at higher risk. The medium severity rating reflects the moderate risk posed by information disclosure without direct system compromise.

Since no patch is available, mitigation should focus on configuration management and access controls. Organizations should audit the configuration of the mall2000.cgi script to ensure it does not expose sensitive information. Restricting access to the CGI script via web server configuration (e.g., IP whitelisting, authentication mechanisms) can reduce exposure. Implementing web application firewalls (WAFs) to detect and block suspicious requests targeting this script is advisable. Additionally, migrating to modern, supported e-commerce platforms with active security maintenance is strongly recommended. Regular security assessments and penetration testing should be conducted to identify and remediate similar misconfigurations. Finally, organizations should ensure that any exposed data is encrypted and that logging and monitoring are in place to detect potential exploitation attempts.