Description
The IRC protocol plugin in libpurple in Pidgin before 2.10.8 does not validate argument counts, which allows remote IRC servers to cause a denial of service (application crash) via a crafted message.
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 |
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 |
Advisories 2
- RHSA-2014:0139 Red Hat Security Advisory: pidgin security update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Jun 28, 2026
- DSA-2859-1 pidgin - several Debian Security (DSA / DLA) · Mar 9, 2026
References
- openSUSE-SU-2014:0326 vendor-advisory
- http://hg.pidgin.im/pidgin/main/rev/a167504359e5
- RHSA-2014:0139 vendor-advisory
- http://hg.pidgin.im/pidgin/main/rev/9f132a6855cd
- DSA-2859 vendor-advisory
- http://pidgin.im/news/security/?id=85
- http://hg.pidgin.im/pidgin/main/rev/4d9be297d399
- openSUSE-SU-2014:0239 vendor-advisory
- http://hg.pidgin.im/pidgin/main/rev/6b0e0566af20
- USN-2100-1 vendor-advisory
- http://hg.pidgin.im/pidgin/main/rev/7d0fb0c6d8d4
- http://hg.pidgin.im/pidgin/main/rev/5845d9fa7084