The (1) otrl_base64_otr_decode function in src/b64.c; (2) otrl_proto_data_read_flags and (3) otrl_proto_accept_data functions in src/proto.c; and (4) decode function in toolkit/parse.c in libotr before 3.2.1 allocates a zero-length buffer when decoding a base64 string, which allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (application crash) via a message with the value "?OTR:===.", which triggers a heap-based buffer overflow.
Conclusion & alert: CVE-2012-3461 is rated Moderate Risk (48.1/100): CVSS Medium severity, with medium exploitation likelihood (EPSS 3.44%). Mandatory action: Review affected assets and schedule remediation.
Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.
EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).
| # | Date | Old EPSS score | New EPSS score | Delta (New - Old) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2026-06-15 | 3.16% | 3.44% | +0.28% |
| 2 | 2026-02-14 | 4.29% | 3.16% | -1.13% |
| 3 | 2025-12-18 | — | 4.29% | — |
Full EPSS history (9 records total)
CVSS metrics for this CVE.
| Base score | Version | Severity | Vector | Exploitability | Impact | Score source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4.3 | 2.0 | MEDIUM |
|
8.6 | 2.9 | [email protected] |
| vendor | priority | summary | link |
|---|---|---|---|
debian
|
medium | CVE-2012-3461 medium priority: Debian including 1 source packages (libotr), 5 status rows across 5 suites (bookworm, bullseye, forky, sid, trixie): resolved 5. | https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2012-3461 |
gentoo
|
high | CVE-2012-3461: 1 GLSA(s) (201309-07), 1 atom(s) (net-libs/libotr); latest impact high. | https://bugs.gentoo.org/buglist.cgi?quicksearch=CVE-2012-3461 |
ubuntu
|
low | CVE-2012-3461 low priority: Ubuntu including 1 source packages (libotr), 6 status rows across 6 suites (hardy, lucid, natty, oneiric, precise, upstream): released 5, ignored 1. | https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2012-3461 |
| Vendor | Product | Version | Raw CPE |
|---|---|---|---|
| cypherpunks | libotr | <= 3.2.0 | cpe:2.3:a:cypherpunks:libotr:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* |
| cypherpunks | libotr | 3.1.0 | cpe:2.3:a:cypherpunks:libotr:3.1.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* |