CVE-2000-0047 is a medium-severity vulnerability identified in the Yahoo Pager/Messenger client version 733. The vulnerability arises from a buffer overflow condition triggered when the client processes a message containing an excessively long URL. Specifically, the client does not properly validate or limit the length of URLs embedded in incoming messages, allowing a remote attacker to send a specially crafted message that overflows the buffer. This overflow can cause the application to crash, resulting in a denial of service (DoS) condition. The vulnerability does not impact confidentiality or integrity, as it does not allow code execution or data leakage, but it affects availability by disrupting the normal operation of the Yahoo Pager client. The attack vector is network-based, requiring no authentication or user interaction beyond receiving the malicious message. No patches or fixes are available for this vulnerability, and there are no known exploits in the wild. Given the age of the vulnerability (published in 1999) and the obsolescence of the Yahoo Pager product, active exploitation is unlikely in modern environments, but legacy systems may still be at risk.

For European organizations, the primary impact of CVE-2000-0047 is the potential disruption of communication services relying on the Yahoo Pager client. Although the product is largely deprecated, any legacy systems or environments still using this client could experience denial of service, leading to interruptions in messaging and collaboration workflows. This could affect internal communications or customer support channels if Yahoo Pager was integrated into business processes. The vulnerability does not compromise sensitive data or system integrity, so the risk is limited to availability. However, in critical operational contexts where messaging uptime is essential, even temporary outages could have operational and reputational consequences. Given the medium severity and lack of active exploitation, the overall risk to European organizations is low unless legacy systems remain in use.

Since no official patch is available for CVE-2000-0047, organizations should take compensating controls to mitigate the risk. First, discontinue use of the Yahoo Pager client and migrate to modern, supported messaging platforms that receive regular security updates. For environments where legacy use is unavoidable, implement network-level filtering to block or sanitize incoming messages containing suspiciously long URLs or malformed payloads targeting the Yahoo Pager client. Employ intrusion detection/prevention systems (IDS/IPS) with signatures tuned to detect buffer overflow attempts against this client. Additionally, isolate legacy systems from critical networks to limit potential impact. Regularly audit and inventory legacy software to identify and phase out unsupported applications. Finally, educate users about the risks of using outdated communication tools and encourage adoption of secure alternatives.