Description
Multiple buffer overflows in (a) BarnOwl before 1.0.5 and (b) owl 2.1.11 allow remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via vectors involving (1) a crafted zcrypt message, related to zcrypt.c; (2) a reply command on a message with a Zephyr Cc: list, related to zwrite.c; and unspecified other use of the products.
Fixed in Linux distributions
Distributions backport fixes, so the version that fixes this vulnerability differs per release — upgrade to at least the version shown. From the distributions' security trackers and advisories.
Debian
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debian 14 | barnowl | 1.0.5-1 | — |
| Debian 13 | barnowl | 1.0.5-1 | — |
| Debian 12 | barnowl | 1.0.5-1 | — |
| Debian 5.0 | barnowl | 1.0.1-4 | DTSA-197-1 |
Advisories 1
- DTSA-197-1 barnowl Debian Security (DSA / DLA) · Mar 9, 2026
References
- http://barnowl.mit.edu/wiki/barnowl-1.0.5-announce
- https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/owl/+bug/329165
- [debian-testing-security-announce] 20090213 Security update for Debian Testing - 2009-02-14 mailing-list
- http://bugs.debian.org/515118
- barnowl-owl-zcrypt-bo(48824) vdb-entry
- http://barnowl.mit.edu/browser/ChangeLog