Berkley DB problem in slackware distribution

From: Martin Bene (mbat_private)
Date: Thu Jul 16 1998 - 00:22:40 PDT

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    Hi!
    
    I recently ran into a potential problem with berkley db 1.85 as distributed
    with all versions of slackware linux: (fixed in slackware 3.5 as of 07.14.98)
    
    libdb.so.1.85.4 defines snprintf and vsnprintf as calls to normal sprintf
    and vsprintf.
    
    Meaning: if you link any program against this lib and aren't careful about
    library linking order, you'll overload the working procedures from libc
    with the dummy-definitions from libdb and thus end up with broken (v)snprintf.
    
    Your programs will be vulnerable to buffer overflows even though correctly
    coded to avoid it. (I ran into this wile experimenting with a qpopper patch
    to directly write sucessfull pop3 logins to a database for use with
    sendmail pop_auth hack).
    
    Bye, Martin
    
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     simon media               fax: +43-316-813824-6
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     8010 Graz, Austria
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