SQL Slammer

SQL Slammer
TypeComputer worm
Origin2003
Technical details
PlatformMicrosoft Windows

SQL Slammer[a] is a 2003 computer worm that caused a denial of service on some Internet hosts and dramatically slowed general Internet traffic. It also crashed routers around the world, causing even more slowdowns. It spread rapidly, infecting most of its 75,000 victims within 10 minutes.

The program exploited a buffer overflow bug in Microsoft's SQL Server and Desktop Engine database products. Although the MS02-039 (CVE-2002-0649)[2] patch had been released six months earlier, many organizations had not yet applied it.

The most infected regions were Europe, North America, and Asia (including East Asia and India).[3]

  1. ^ "Symantec W32.SQLExp.Worm". Archived from the original on 10 November 2006.
  2. ^ "CVE - CVE-2002-0649". cve.mitre.org. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
  3. ^ Mezquita, Ty (12 February 2020). "SQL Slammer Virus (Harbinger of things to come)". CyberHoot.


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