RHSA-2009:1453 - Security Advisory

Topic

Updated pidgin packages that fix several security issues 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.

Description

Pidgin is an instant messaging program which can log in to multiple
accounts on multiple instant messaging networks simultaneously. Info/Query
(IQ) is an Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol (XMPP) specific
request-response mechanism.

A NULL pointer dereference flaw was found in the way the Pidgin XMPP
protocol plug-in processes IQ error responses when trying to fetch a custom
smiley. A remote client could send a specially-crafted IQ error response
that would crash Pidgin. (CVE-2009-3085)

A NULL pointer dereference flaw was found in the way the Pidgin IRC
protocol plug-in handles IRC topics. A malicious IRC server could send a
specially-crafted IRC TOPIC message, which once received by Pidgin, would
lead to a denial of service (Pidgin crash). (CVE-2009-2703)

It was discovered that, when connecting to certain, very old Jabber servers
via XMPP, Pidgin may ignore the "Require SSL/TLS" setting. In these
situations, a non-encrypted connection is established rather than the
connection failing, causing the user to believe they are using an encrypted
connection when they are not, leading to sensitive information disclosure
(session sniffing). (CVE-2009-3026)

A NULL pointer dereference flaw was found in the way the Pidgin MSN
protocol plug-in handles improper MSNSLP invitations. A remote attacker
could send a specially-crafted MSNSLP invitation request, which once
accepted by a valid Pidgin user, would lead to a denial of service (Pidgin
crash). (CVE-2009-3083)

These packages upgrade Pidgin to version 2.6.2. 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.

Solution

Before applying this update, make sure that all previously-released
errata relevant to your system have been applied.

This update is available via Red Hat Network. Details on how to use
the Red Hat Network to apply this update are available at
http://kbase.redhat.com/faq/docs/DOC-11259

Affected Products

• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server 5 x86_64
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server 5 i386
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server 4 x86_64
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server 4 ia64
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server 4 i386
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux for x86_64 - Extended Update Support 5.4 x86_64
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux for x86_64 - Extended Update Support 5.4 i386
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux for x86_64 - Extended Update Support 4.8 x86_64
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux for x86_64 - Extended Update Support 4.8 ia64
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux for x86_64 - Extended Update Support 4.8 i386
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation 5 x86_64
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation 5 i386
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation 4 x86_64
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation 4 ia64
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation 4 i386
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop 5 x86_64
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop 5 i386
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop 4 x86_64
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop 4 i386
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux for Power, big endian 4 ppc
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux for Power, big endian - Extended Update Support 4.8 ppc
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server from RHUI 5 x86_64
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server from RHUI 5 i386

Fixes

• BZ - 519224 - CVE-2009-3026 pidgin: ignores SSL/TLS requirements with old jabber servers
• BZ - 521823 - CVE-2009-2703 Pidgin: NULL pointer dereference by handling IRC topic(s) (DoS)
• BZ - 521832 - CVE-2009-3083 Pidgin: NULL pointer dereference by processing incomplete MSN SLP invite (DoS)
• BZ - 521853 - CVE-2009-3085 Pidgin: NULL pointer dereference by processing a custom smiley (DoS)

CVEs

• CVE-2009-3083
• CVE-2009-3085
• CVE-2009-2703
• CVE-2009-3026

References

• http://www.redhat.com/security/updates/classification/#moderate
• http://xmpp.org/rfcs/rfc3920.html#stanzas-semantics-iq