dbcve.org
LinuxOperating system · Gentoo

CVE-2004-0891

HIGH · 10.0 CVSS v2.0 Published 2005-01-27
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
Buffer overflow in the MSN protocol handler for gaim 0.79 to 1.0.1 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (application crash) and possibly execute arbitrary code via an "unexpected sequence of MSNSLP messages" that results in an unbounded copy operation that writes to the wrong buffer.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · moderate confidence

Buffer overflow in gaim's MSN protocol handler (versions 0.79-1.0.1) stems from an unbounded copy operation when processing MSNSLP messages. The vulnerability allows writing beyond buffer boundaries, enabling remote code execution or denial of service via application crash.

MitigationUpgrade to gaim 1.0.2 or later which contains the patched bounds-checked copy operation for MSNSLP message handling; until patched, avoid using the MSN protocol feature.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
LinuxOperating system
Affected:all versions= 1.4
Ubuntu LinuxOperating system
Affected:= 4.1
GaimApplication
Affected:= 0.10= 0.10.3= 0.50= 0.51= 0.52= 0.53= 0.54= 0.55= 0.56= 0.57= 0.58= 0.59
Slackware LinuxOperating system
Affected:= 9.0= 9.1= 10.0= current

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
Low
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Complete
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete

AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify installed gaim version
    Run 'gaim --version' or check the package manager (dpkg -l gaim, rpm -q gaim, or emerge -pv net-im/gaim)
    Affected if The version listed is 0.79, 0.80, 0.81, 0.82, 0.83, 0.84, 0.85, 0.86, 0.87, 0.88, 0.89, 0.90, 1.0.0, or 1.0.1 (any version from 0.79 through 1.0.1 inclusive)
  2. Confirm the binary is gaim
    Check the executable path with 'which gaim' or 'file $(which gaim)'
    Affected if The binary name is 'gaim' (note: later versions were renamed to 'pidgin')
  3. Verify MSN protocol handler is loaded
    Launch gaim, go to Accounts or check for MSN protocol support - look for 'MSN' in the protocol dropdown or list of enabled protocols
    Affected if MSN protocol account is configured or the MSN plugin module is present and loaded
  4. Check for MSNSLP message handling
    This is an internal protocol behavior - no direct config check available. The vulnerability triggers when gaim processes MSN-specific MSNSLP messages during instant messaging sessions
    Affected if The gaim version is in the vulnerable range AND the MSN protocol feature is in use

You are affected if gaim version 0.79 through 1.0.1 is installed AND the MSN protocol handler is active or configured on the system.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Upgrade to gaim 1.0.2 or later which contains the patched bounds-checked copy operation for MSNSLP message handling; until patched, avoid using the MSN protocol feature.

Recommended fix High confidence

Gaim 1.0.2 or later (or Pidgin 2.x branch)

  1. 1. Identify the currently installed Gaim version by running 'gaim --version' or checking the package manager
  2. 2. If running a version between 0.79 and 1.0.1 inclusive, the system is vulnerable
  3. 3. Upgrade to Gaim version 1.0.2 or later (or migrate to Pidgin 2.x which succeeded Gaim)
  4. 4. Use the system package manager to upgrade: 'apt-get update && apt-get install gaim' (Debian/Ubuntu), 'yum update gaim' (Red Hat/Fedora), or 'emerge gaim' (Gentoo)
  5. 5. Verify the upgrade was successful by checking the new version
  6. 6. Restart the Gaim/Pidgin application if it was running
Caveat Gaim was rebranded to Pidgin after version 1.0.x; Pidgin 2.x has a different plugin API so custom plugins may need updating

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Linux Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
15.0 hours of engineering $2,640
Get help mitigating

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,224.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2004-0891 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2004-0891 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data