Python 2.5.2 and earlier allows context-dependent attackers to execute arbitrary code via multiple vectors that cause a negative size value

Affected versions

NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.

• canonical ubuntu linux6.06
• canonical ubuntu linux7.04
• canonical ubuntu linux7.10
• canonical ubuntu linux8.04
• debian debian linux4.0
• python pythonup to 2.5.2 inclusive

Package-level exposure

OSV and GitHub Advisory data: ecosystem, package and range. SBOM matching uses this table.

Other highest-scoring records for the same primary product.

• CVE-2016-5636Integer overflow in the get_data function in zipimport.c in CPython (aka Python) before 2.7.12, 3.x before 3.4.5, and 3.5.x before 3.5.2 all
  47Plan
• CVE-2007-4559Directory traversal vulnerability in the (1) extract and (2) extractall functions in the tarfile module in Python allows user-assisted remot
  47Plan
• CVE-2021-3177Python 3.x through 3.9.1 has a buffer overflow in PyCArg_repr in _ctypes/callproc.c, which may lead to remote code execution in certain Pyth
  46Plan
• CVE-2014-4650The CGIHTTPServer module in Python 2.7.5 and 3.3.4 does not properly handle URLs in which URL encoding is used for path separators, which al
  46Plan
• CVE-2018-1000802Python Software Foundation Python (CPython) version 2.7 contains a CWE-77: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in a Command ('C
  45Plan
• CVE-2020-27619In Python 3 through 3.9.0, the Lib/test/multibytecodec_support.py CJK codec tests call eval() on content retrieved via HTTP.
  42Plan

FIRST EPSS daily score; only changes of 0.01 or more are recorded (step chart).

Root cause

When data is copied, the source length is not compared with the size of the destination buffer. Excess data overwrites adjacent memory.

A representative example of this vulnerability class. Not the vendor's source code; it shows the faulty pattern and its fix.

1char buf[256];2memcpy(buf, pkt->data, pkt->len);

1char buf[256];2if (pkt->len > sizeof(buf)) {3  return -EINVAL;4}5memcpy(buf, pkt->data, pkt->len);

Attack context

MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.