CVE-2000-0182 is a medium-severity vulnerability affecting iPlanet Web Server version 4.1 Enterprise. The vulnerability allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (DoS) condition by sending a large number of HTTP GET requests to the server. This flood of GET commands consumes excessive memory resources on the server, ultimately leading to a kernel panic and crashing the system. The vulnerability does not require authentication or user interaction, and it can be exploited over the network with low complexity, as the attacker only needs to send repeated GET requests. The impact is limited to availability, as confidentiality and integrity are not affected. No patch is available for this vulnerability, and there are no known exploits in the wild. Given the age of the software (published in 2000), this vulnerability primarily affects legacy systems that may still be running iPlanet Web Server 4.1 Enterprise. The lack of a patch and the potential for a kernel panic make this a significant risk for any remaining deployments of this software.

For European organizations, the primary impact of this vulnerability is the potential disruption of web services hosted on iPlanet Web Server 4.1 Enterprise. A successful attack could cause server crashes, leading to downtime and loss of availability for critical web applications or services. This could affect business operations, customer trust, and potentially lead to financial losses. Since the vulnerability does not affect confidentiality or integrity, data breaches are unlikely; however, service unavailability can still have severe operational consequences, especially for organizations relying on continuous web presence or real-time services. Organizations using legacy infrastructure or those in sectors with limited IT modernization may be more vulnerable. Additionally, the absence of a patch means that mitigation relies heavily on network-level controls and operational procedures.

Given that no patch is available for this vulnerability, European organizations should implement specific mitigations to reduce risk. First, network-level rate limiting and filtering should be applied to restrict the number of incoming GET requests from individual IP addresses or subnets, preventing request floods. Deploying web application firewalls (WAFs) capable of detecting and blocking abnormal HTTP request patterns can help mitigate exploitation attempts. Organizations should consider isolating legacy iPlanet Web Server instances behind reverse proxies or load balancers that can absorb or filter malicious traffic. Monitoring and alerting on unusual spikes in HTTP GET requests are critical for early detection. Where feasible, migrating away from iPlanet Web Server 4.1 Enterprise to a supported and patched web server platform is strongly recommended to eliminate the vulnerability entirely. Additionally, network segmentation can limit the exposure of vulnerable servers to untrusted networks.