CVE-2016-2376 [High] | Memory Corruption in Pidgin

A buffer overflow vulnerability exists in the handling of the MXIT protocol in Pidgin. Specially crafted MXIT data sent from the server could potentially result in arbitrary code execution. A malicious server or an attacker who intercepts the network traffic can send an invalid size for a packet which will trigger a buffer overflow.

#	Date	Old EPSS score	New EPSS score	Delta (New - Old)
1	2026-06-15	6.73%	3.70%	-3.02%
2	2026-05-13	6.85%	6.73%	-0.13%
3	2025-12-28	—	6.85%	—

Date

Old EPSS score

New EPSS score

Delta (New - Old)

2026-06-15

6.73%

3.70%

-3.02%

2026-05-13

6.85%

6.73%

-0.13%

2025-12-28

—

6.85%

—

Base score	Version	Severity	Vector	Exploitability	Impact	Score source
8.1	3.0	HIGH	`CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H` Click to expand Attack vector (AV:N) Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine. Attack complexity (AC:H) Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work. Privileges required (PR:N) No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough. User interaction (UI:N) Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping. Scope (S:U) Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems. Confidentiality (C:H) Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way. Integrity (I:H) They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt. Availability (A:H) Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.	2.2	5.9	[email protected]
6.8	2.0	MEDIUM	`AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P` Click to expand Access vector (AV:N) Can be exploited remotely over network reachability. Access complexity (AC:M) Exploitation needs some favorable conditions, but not exceptional ones. Authentication (AU:N) No authentication is required. Confidentiality impact (C:P) Partial confidentiality impact. Integrity impact (I:P) Partial integrity impact. Availability impact (A:P) Partial availability impact.	8.6	6.4	[email protected]

Base score

Version

Severity

Vector

Exploitability

Impact

Score source

8.1

3.0

HIGH

CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand

Attack vector (AV:N): Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:H): Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work.
Privileges required (PR:N): No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:N): Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U): Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H): Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H): They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H): Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.

2.2

5.9

[email protected]

6.8

2.0

MEDIUM

AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P Click to expand

Access vector (AV:N): Can be exploited remotely over network reachability.
Access complexity (AC:M): Exploitation needs some favorable conditions, but not exceptional ones.
Authentication (AU:N): No authentication is required.
Confidentiality impact (C:P): Partial confidentiality impact.
Integrity impact (I:P): Partial integrity impact.
Availability impact (A:P): Partial availability impact.

8.6

6.4

[email protected]

OS Trackers for CVE-2016-2376

vendor	priority	summary	link
`debian`	not yet assigned	CVE-2016-2376 not yet assigned priority: Debian including 1 source packages (pidgin), 5 status rows across 5 suites (bookworm, bullseye, forky, sid, trixie): resolved 5.	https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2016-2376
`gentoo`	normal	CVE-2016-2376: 1 GLSA(s) (201701-38), 1 atom(s) (net-im/pidgin); latest impact normal.	https://bugs.gentoo.org/buglist.cgi?quicksearch=CVE-2016-2376
`redhat`	medium	—	https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2016-2376
`suse`	medium	CVE-2016-2376 severity moderate: SUSE including 9 source package names (finch, finch-devel, …), 36 product×package rows across 6 product lines (SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 12, SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 12 SP1, … (6 product lines)): Known Not Affected 36.	https://www.suse.com/security/cve/CVE-2016-2376/
`ubuntu`	medium	CVE-2016-2376 medium priority: Ubuntu including 1 source packages (pidgin), 5 status rows across 5 suites (precise, trusty, upstream, wily, xenial): released 5.	https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2016-2376

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2016-2376

Vendor	Product	Version	Raw CPE
pidgin	pidgin	<= 2.10.12	cpe:2.3:a:pidgin:pidgin::::::::
canonical	ubuntu_linux	12.04	cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:12.04::::lts:::
canonical	ubuntu_linux	14.04	cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:14.04::::lts:::
canonical	ubuntu_linux	15.10	cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:15.10:::::::*
debian	debian_linux	8.0	cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:8.0:::::::*

References for CVE-2016-2376

URL	Tags
http://www.debian.org/security/2016/dsa-3620	Third Party Advisory
http://www.pidgin.im/news/security/?id=92	Patch Vendor Advisory
http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/91335	Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://www.talosintelligence.com/reports/TALOS-2016-0118/	Technical Description Third Party Advisory
http://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-3031-1	Third Party Advisory
https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/201701-38

URL

CVE-2016-2376

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2016-2376

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2016-2376

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2016-2376

OS Trackers for CVE-2016-2376

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2016-2376

References for CVE-2016-2376