The OSCAR protocol implementation in Pidgin before 2.5.8 misinterprets the ICQWebMessage message type as the ICQSMS message type, which allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (application crash) via a crafted ICQ web message that triggers allocation of a large amount of memory.

From Red Hat Security Advisory 2009:1139 :

Updated pidgin packages that fix one security issue and one bug are now available for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 and 5.

This update has been rated as having moderate security impact by the Red Hat Security Response Team.

Pidgin is an instant messaging program which can log in to multiple accounts on multiple instant messaging networks simultaneously. The AOL Open System for CommunicAtion in Realtime (OSCAR) protocol is used by the AOL ICQ and AIM instant messaging systems.

A denial of service flaw was found in the Pidgin OSCAR protocol implementation. If a remote ICQ user sent a web message to a local Pidgin user using this protocol, it would cause excessive memory usage, leading to a denial of service (Pidgin crash). (CVE-2009-1889)

These updated packages also fix the following bug :

* the Yahoo! Messenger Protocol changed, making it incompatible (and unusable) with Pidgin versions prior to 2.5.7. This update provides Pidgin 2.5.8, which implements version 16 of the Yahoo! Messenger Protocol, which resolves this issue.

Note: These packages upgrade Pidgin to version 2.5.8. Refer to the Pidgin release notes for a full list of changes:
http://developer.pidgin.im/wiki/ChangeLog

All Pidgin users should upgrade to these updated packages, which correct these issues. Pidgin must be restarted for this update to take effect.

A denial of service flaw was found in the Pidgin OSCAR protocol implementation. If a remote ICQ user sent a web message to a local Pidgin user using this protocol, it would cause excessive memory usage, leading to a denial of service (Pidgin crash). (CVE-2009-1889)

These updated packages also fix the following bug :

  - the Yahoo! Messenger Protocol changed, making it     incompatible (and unusable) with Pidgin versions prior     to 2.5.7. This update provides Pidgin 2.5.8, which     implements version 16 of the Yahoo! Messenger Protocol,     which resolves this issue.

Note: These packages upgrade Pidgin to version 2.5.8.

Pidgin must be restarted for this update to take effect.

- malformed responses to file transfers could cause a     buffer overflow in pidgin. (CVE-2009-1373)

  - the fix against integer overflows in the msn protocol     handling was incomplete. (CVE-2009-1376)

  - certain ICQ message types could crash pidgin.
    (CVE-2009-1889)

Several bugfixes were done for the Instant Messenger Pidgin :

  - Malformed responses to file transfers could cause a     buffer overflow in pidgin (CVE-2009-1373) and specially     crafted packets could crash it. (CVE-2009-1375)

  - The fix against integer overflows in the msn protocol     handling was incomplete. (CVE-2009-1376)

  - Fixed misparsing ICQ message as SMS DoS (CVE-2009-1889,     Pidgin#9483).

Also the Yahoo IM protocol was made to work again.

Updated pidgin packages that fix one security issue and one bug are now available for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 and 5.

This update has been rated as having moderate security impact by the Red Hat Security Response Team.

Pidgin is an instant messaging program which can log in to multiple accounts on multiple instant messaging networks simultaneously. The AOL Open System for CommunicAtion in Realtime (OSCAR) protocol is used by the AOL ICQ and AIM instant messaging systems.

A denial of service flaw was found in the Pidgin OSCAR protocol implementation. If a remote ICQ user sent a web message to a local Pidgin user using this protocol, it would cause excessive memory usage, leading to a denial of service (Pidgin crash). (CVE-2009-1889)

These updated packages also fix the following bug :

* the Yahoo! Messenger Protocol changed, making it incompatible (and unusable) with Pidgin versions prior to 2.5.7. This update provides Pidgin 2.5.8, which implements version 16 of the Yahoo! Messenger Protocol, which resolves this issue.

Note: These packages upgrade Pidgin to version 2.5.8. Refer to the Pidgin release notes for a full list of changes:
http://developer.pidgin.im/wiki/ChangeLog

All Pidgin users should upgrade to these updated packages, which correct these issues. Pidgin must be restarted for this update to take effect.

Security vulnerabilities has been identified and fixed in pidgin :

The NSS plugin in libpurple in Pidgin 2.4.1 does not verify SSL certificates, which makes it easier for remote attackers to trick a user into accepting an invalid server certificate for a spoofed service. (CVE-2008-3532)

Pidgin 2.4.1 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (crash) via a long filename that contains certain characters, as demonstrated using an MSN message that triggers the crash in the msn_slplink_process_msg function. (CVE-2008-2955)

The UPnP functionality in Pidgin 2.0.0, and possibly other versions, allows remote attackers to trigger the download of arbitrary files and cause a denial of service (memory or disk consumption) via a UDP packet that specifies an arbitrary URL. (CVE-2008-2957)

Buffer overflow in the XMPP SOCKS5 bytestream server in Pidgin (formerly Gaim) before 2.5.6 allows remote authenticated users to execute arbitrary code via vectors involving an outbound XMPP file transfer. NOTE: some of these details are obtained from third-party information (CVE-2009-1373).

Buffer overflow in the decrypt_out function in Pidgin (formerly Gaim) before 2.5.6 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (application crash) via a QQ packet (CVE-2009-1374).

The PurpleCircBuffer implementation in Pidgin (formerly Gaim) before 2.5.6 does not properly maintain a certain buffer, which allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (memory corruption and application crash) via vectors involving the (1) XMPP or (2) Sametime protocol (CVE-2009-1375).

Multiple integer overflows in the msn_slplink_process_msg functions in the MSN protocol handler in (1) libpurple/protocols/msn/slplink.c and (2) libpurple/protocols/msnp9/slplink.c in Pidgin (formerly Gaim) before 2.5.6 on 32-bit platforms allow remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a malformed SLP message with a crafted offset value, leading to buffer overflows. NOTE: this issue exists because of an incomplete fix for CVE-2008-2927 (CVE-2009-1376).

The OSCAR protocol implementation in Pidgin before 2.5.8 misinterprets the ICQWebMessage message type as the ICQSMS message type, which allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (application crash) via a crafted ICQ web message that triggers allocation of a large amount of memory (CVE-2009-1889).

The msn_slplink_process_msg function in libpurple/protocols/msn/slplink.c in libpurple, as used in Pidgin (formerly Gaim) before 2.5.9 and Adium 1.3.5 and earlier, allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (memory corruption and application crash) by sending multiple crafted SLP (aka MSNSLP) messages to trigger an overwrite of an arbitrary memory location. NOTE: this issue reportedly exists because of an incomplete fix for CVE-2009-1376 (CVE-2009-2694).

Unspecified vulnerability in Pidgin 2.6.0 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (crash) via a link in a Yahoo IM (CVE-2009-3025)

protocols/jabber/auth.c in libpurple in Pidgin 2.6.0, and possibly other versions, does not follow the require TLS/SSL preference when connecting to older Jabber servers that do not follow the XMPP specification, which causes libpurple to connect to the server without the expected encryption and allows remote attackers to sniff sessions (CVE-2009-3026).

libpurple/protocols/irc/msgs.c in the IRC protocol plugin in libpurple in Pidgin before 2.6.2 allows remote IRC servers to cause a denial of service (NULL pointer dereference and application crash) via a TOPIC message that lacks a topic string (CVE-2009-2703).

The msn_slp_sip_recv function in libpurple/protocols/msn/slp.c in the MSN protocol plugin in libpurple in Pidgin before 2.6.2 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (NULL pointer dereference and application crash) via an SLP invite message that lacks certain required fields, as demonstrated by a malformed message from a KMess client (CVE-2009-3083).

The msn_slp_process_msg function in libpurple/protocols/msn/slpcall.c in the MSN protocol plugin in libpurple 2.6.0 and 2.6.1, as used in Pidgin before 2.6.2, allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (application crash) via a handwritten (aka Ink) message, related to an uninitialized variable and the incorrect UTF16-LE charset name (CVE-2009-3084).

The XMPP protocol plugin in libpurple in Pidgin before 2.6.2 does not properly handle an error IQ stanza during an attempted fetch of a custom smiley, which allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (application crash) via XHTML-IM content with cid: images (CVE-2009-3085).

This update provides pidgin 2.6.2, which is not vulnerable to these issues.

The remote host is affected by the vulnerability described in GLSA-200910-02 (Pidgin: Multiple vulnerabilities)

    Multiple vulnerabilities were found in Pidgin:
    Yuriy     Kaminskiy reported that the OSCAR protocol implementation in Pidgin     misinterprets the ICQWebMessage message type as the ICQSMS message     type, triggering an allocation of a large amount of memory     (CVE-2009-1889).
    Federico Muttis of Core Security Technologies     reported that the msn_slplink_process_msg() function in     libpurple/protocols/msn/slplink.c in libpurple as used in Pidgin     doesn't properly process incoming SLP messages, triggering an overwrite     of an arbitrary memory location (CVE-2009-2694). NOTE: This issue     reportedly exists because of an incomplete fix for CVE-2009-1376 (GLSA     200905-07).
    bugdave reported that protocols/jabber/auth.c in     libpurple as used in Pidgin does not follow the 'require TSL/SSL'     preference when connecting to older Jabber servers that do not follow     the XMPP specification, resulting in a connection to the server without     the expected encryption (CVE-2009-3026).
  Impact :

    A remote attacker could send specially crafted SLP (via MSN) or ICQ web     messages, possibly leading to execution of arbitrary code with the     privileges of the user running Pidgin, unauthorized information     disclosure, or a Denial of Service.
  Workaround :

    There is no known workaround at this time.

Several bugfixes were done for the Instant Messenger Pidgin :

  - Malformed responses to file transfers could cause a     buffer overflow in pidgin (CVE-2009-1373) and specially     crafted packets could crash it (CVE-2009-1375).

  - The fix against integer overflows in the msn protocol     handling was incomplete (CVE-2009-1376).

  - Fixed misparsing ICQ message as SMS DoS (CVE-2009-1889,     Pidgin#9483).

Also the Yahoo IM protocol was made to work again.

Several bugfixes were done for the Instant Messenger Pidgin :

  - Malformed responses to file transfers could cause a     buffer overflow in pidgin (CVE-2009-1373) and specially     crafted packets could crash it. (CVE-2009-1375)

  - The fix against integer overflows in the msn protocol     handling was incomplete. (CVE-2009-1376)

  - Fixed misparsing ICQ message as SMS DoS (CVE-2009-1889,     Pidgin#9483). Also the Yahoo IM protocol was made to     work again.

Yuriy Kaminskiy discovered that Pidgin did not properly handle certain messages in the ICQ protocol handler. A remote attacker could send a specially crafted message and cause Pidgin to crash.

Note that Tenable Network Security has extracted the preceding description block directly from the Ubuntu security advisory. Tenable has attempted to automatically clean and format it as much as possible without introducing additional issues.

Several important bug fixes: - More fixes for Yahoo protocol 16 - MSN, MySpace, XMPP - CVE-2009-1889

Note that Tenable Network Security has extracted the preceding description block directly from the Fedora security advisory. Tenable has attempted to automatically clean and format it as much as possible without introducing additional issues.

ID	Name	Product	Family	Severity
67888	Oracle Linux 4 : pidgin (ELSA-2009-1139)	Nessus	Oracle Linux Local Security Checks	medium
60612	Scientific Linux Security Update : pidgin on SL4.x, SL5.x i386/x86_64	Nessus	Scientific Linux Local Security Checks	medium
51744	SuSE 10 Security Update : gaim (ZYPP Patch Number 6350)	Nessus	SuSE Local Security Checks	high
51723	SuSE 10 Security Update : pidgin (ZYPP Patch Number 6342)	Nessus	SuSE Local Security Checks	high
43766	CentOS 5 : pidgin (CESA-2009:1139)	Nessus	CentOS Local Security Checks	medium
43024	Mandriva Linux Security Advisory : pidgin (MDVSA-2009:321)	Nessus	Mandriva Local Security Checks	critical
42214	GLSA-200910-02 : Pidgin: Multiple vulnerabilities	Nessus	Gentoo Local Security Checks	critical
41999	openSUSE 10 Security Update : finch (finch-6351)	Nessus	SuSE Local Security Checks	high
41388	SuSE 11 Security Update : pidgin (SAT Patch Number 1094)	Nessus	SuSE Local Security Checks	high
40338	openSUSE Security Update : finch (finch-1088)	Nessus	SuSE Local Security Checks	high
40336	openSUSE Security Update : finch (finch-1088)	Nessus	SuSE Local Security Checks	high
39619	Ubuntu 8.04 LTS / 8.10 / 9.04 : pidgin vulnerability (USN-796-1)	Nessus	Ubuntu Local Security Checks	medium
39612	Fedora 9 : pidgin-2.5.8-1.fc9 (2009-7415)	Nessus	Fedora Local Security Checks	medium
39610	Fedora 10 : pidgin-2.5.8-1.fc10 (2009-7370)	Nessus	Fedora Local Security Checks	medium
39608	Fedora 11 : pidgin-2.5.8-1.fc11 (2009-7359)	Nessus	Fedora Local Security Checks	medium
39598	RHEL 4 / 5 : pidgin (RHSA-2009:1139)	Nessus	Red Hat Local Security Checks	medium

Detections

Analytics

CVE-2009-1889

high

Tenable Plugins

medium

medium

high

high

medium

critical

critical

high

high

high

high

medium

medium

medium

medium

medium