Gaim contains a buffer overflow vulnerability in the yahoo_decode() function

Overview

There is a buffer overflow vulnerability in the Gaim yahoo_decode() function, which could cause a pointer to reference memory beyond the terminating null byte.

Description

Gaim is a multi-protocol instant messenger available for a number of operating systems. It supports a variety of instant messaging protocols, including the Yahoo Messenger (YMSG) protocol. There is a buffer overflow vulnerability in the yahoo_decode() function. This function fails to properly allocate memory for octal values, which could result in a pointer referencing a memory location beyond the terminating null byte.

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Impact

An unauthenticated, remote attacker may cause a denial of service or potentially execute code of the attacker’s choice.

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Solution

Upgrade

Upgrade to Gaim version 0.76 or later.

Apply a patch
The maintainers of Gaim have supplied a patch to address this vulnerability.

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Vendor Information

655974

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Gaim __ Affected

Updated: April 30, 2004

Status

Affected

Vendor Statement

We have not received a statement from the vendor.

Vendor Information

The vendor has not provided us with any further information regarding this vulnerability.

Addendum

This vulnerability has been addressed in versions 0.76 and later. A patch is also available to address this issue.

If you have feedback, comments, or additional information about this vulnerability, please send us [email](<mailto:[email protected]?Subject=VU%23655974 Feedback>).

CVSS Metrics

Group	Score	Vector
Base
Temporal
Environmental

References

• <http://security.e-matters.de/advisories/012004.html&gt;
• <http://gaim.sourceforge.net/gaim-0.75.patch&gt;
• <http://www.debian.org/security/2004/dsa-434&gt;
• http://distro.conectiva.com.br/atualizacoes/?id=a&anuncio=000813
• <http://www.secunia.com/advisories/10705/&gt;

Acknowledgements

This vulnerability was publicly reported by Stefan Esser of e-matters.

This document was written by Damon Morda.

Other Information

CVE IDs:	CVE-2004-0005
Severity Metric:	7.88 Date Public: