Description
The SIMPLE protocol functionality in Pidgin before 2.10.8 allows remote attackers to have an unspecified impact via a negative Content-Length header, which triggers a buffer overflow.
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 | pidgin | 2.10.8-1 | — |
| Debian 13 | pidgin | 2.10.8-1 | — |
| Debian 12 | pidgin | 2.10.8-1 | — |
| Debian 7 | pidgin | 2.10.9-1~deb7u1 | DSA-2859-1 |
| Debian 6.0 | pidgin | 2.7.3-1+squeeze4 | DSA-2859-2 |
Red Hat
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| RHEL 6 | finch +9 | 2.7.9-27.el6 | RHSA-2014:0139 |
| RHEL 5 | finch +8 | 2.6.6-32.el5 | RHSA-2014:0139 |
Public exploits
Exploit or proof-of-concept code for this vulnerability is publicly available, which lowers the bar for attackers. Treat it as a reason to patch sooner.
Third-party code, not reviewed by us. Public PoCs are sometimes fake or contain malware. Read the code first and run it only in an isolated lab, against systems you are authorised to test.
GitHub 1 repository
-
Everdoh/CVE-2013-6490 ★ 0 · Oct 5, 2022
Sources: PoC-in-GitHub, Metasploit Framework, Exploit-DB — updated daily. Only links are listed; no exploit code is hosted here.
Advisories 3
- RHSA-2014:0139 Red Hat Security Advisory: pidgin security update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Jun 28, 2026
- DSA-2859-2 pidgin - security update Debian Security (DSA / DLA) · Mar 9, 2026
- DSA-2859-1 pidgin - several Debian Security (DSA / DLA) · Mar 9, 2026
References
- RHSA-2014:0139 vendor-advisory
- DSA-2859 vendor-advisory
- USN-2100-1 vendor-advisory
- 65195 vdb-entry
- http://www.pidgin.im/news/security/?id=84
- http://hg.pidgin.im/pidgin/main/rev/6bd2dd10e5da