CVE-1999-1353 is a medium-severity vulnerability affecting Nosque MsgCore version 2.14, a messaging or communication software product. The vulnerability arises from the insecure storage of passwords in cleartext format. Specifically, the administrator password is stored in the Windows registry under the AdmPasswd key, and user passwords are stored in the Userbase.dbf database file without encryption or hashing. This insecure storage allows any local user with access to the system to read these passwords directly, potentially escalating their privileges to administrative levels or impersonating other users. The vulnerability requires local access (AV:L) and low attack complexity (AC:L), with no authentication needed (Au:N) to exploit once local access is obtained. The impact affects confidentiality, integrity, and availability (C:P/I:P/A:P), as attackers can gain unauthorized access and control over the system. Although this vulnerability was published in 1999 and no patches are available, it remains relevant for legacy systems still running MsgCore 2.14. There are no known exploits in the wild, but the risk persists due to the ease of password extraction from unprotected storage locations.

For European organizations, the impact of this vulnerability depends largely on whether legacy systems running Nosque MsgCore 2.14 are still in use. If present, attackers with local access—such as disgruntled employees, contractors, or attackers who have gained initial footholds—could easily extract administrator and user passwords. This could lead to privilege escalation, unauthorized access to sensitive communications, data breaches, and potential disruption of messaging services. Given the vulnerability affects confidentiality, integrity, and availability, organizations could face operational disruptions and compliance issues, especially under GDPR regulations that mandate protection of personal data. The lack of patches means organizations must rely on compensating controls to mitigate risk. The threat is more pronounced in environments where MsgCore is integrated with critical infrastructure or sensitive communications, such as government agencies, financial institutions, or healthcare providers in Europe.

Since no patches are available for this vulnerability, European organizations should implement the following specific mitigations: 1) Identify and inventory all systems running Nosque MsgCore 2.14 and assess their criticality. 2) Restrict local access strictly to trusted personnel and enforce strong physical and logical access controls on affected systems. 3) Use host-based intrusion detection systems (HIDS) to monitor unauthorized access attempts to registry keys and database files. 4) Consider isolating MsgCore servers on segmented networks with limited connectivity to reduce attack surface. 5) If possible, migrate away from MsgCore 2.14 to modern, supported messaging platforms with secure credential storage. 6) Employ full disk encryption and file system permissions to protect Userbase.dbf and registry hives from unauthorized reading. 7) Regularly audit and monitor system logs for suspicious activities related to privilege escalation attempts. 8) Educate administrators and users about the risks of local credential exposure and enforce strong password policies to reduce impact if credentials are compromised.