GLSA 200701-24: VLC media player: Format string vulnerability

http://security.gentoo.org/

Severity:	normal
Title:	VLC media player: Format string vulnerability
Date:	01/26/2007
Bugs:	#159845
ID:	200701-24

Synopsis

VLC media player improperly handles format strings, allowing for the execution of arbitrary code.

Background

VLC media player is a multimedia player for various audio and video formats.

Affected packages

Package	Vulnerable	Unaffected	Architecture(s)
media-video/vlc	< 0.8.6-r1	>= 0.8.6-r1	All supported architectures

Description

Kevin Finisterre has discovered that when handling media locations, various functions throughout VLC media player make improper use of format strings.

Impact

An attacker could entice a user to open a specially crafted media location or M3U file with VLC media player, and execute arbitrary code on the system with the rights of the user running VLC media player.

Workaround

There is no known workaround at this time.

Resolution

All VLC media player users should upgrade to the latest version:

    # emerge --sync
    # emerge --ask --oneshot --verbose ">=media-video/vlc-0.8.6-r1"

References

CVE-2007-0017

Availability

This GLSA and any updates to it are available for viewing at the Gentoo Security Website: http://security.gentoo.org/glsa/glsa-200701-24.xml

Concerns?

Security is a primary focus of Gentoo Linux and ensuring the confidentiality and security of our users machines is of utmost importance to us. Any security concerns should be addressed to security@gentoo.org or alternatively, you may file a bug at https://bugs.gentoo.org.