Red Hat: RHSA-2009:1177-01 Moderate: Python Buffer Overflow Risk

Python is an interpreted, interactive, object-oriented programming language.
When the assert() system call was disabled, an input sanitization flaw was revealed in the Python string object implementation that led to a buffer overflow. The missing check for negative size values meant the Python memory allocator could allocate less memory than expected. This could result in arbitrary code execution with the Python interpreter's privileges. (CVE-2008-1887)
Multiple buffer and integer overflow flaws were found in the Python Unicode string processing and in the Python Unicode and string object implementations. An attacker could use these flaws to cause a denial of service (Python application crash). (CVE-2008-3142, CVE-2008-5031)
Multiple integer overflow flaws were found in the Python imageop module. If a Python application used the imageop module to process untrusted images, it could cause the application to crash or, potentially, execute arbitrary code with the Python interpreter's privileges. (CVE-2008-1679, CVE-2008-4864)
Multiple integer underflow and overflow flaws were found in the Python snprintf() wrapper implementation. An attacker could use these flaws to cause a denial of service (memory corruption). (CVE-2008-3144)
Multiple integer overflow flaws were found in various Python modules. An attacker could use these flaws to cause a denial of service (Python application crash). (CVE-2008-2315, CVE-2008-3143)
An integer signedness error, leading to a buffer overflow, was found in the Python zlib extension module. If a Python application requested the negative byte count be flushed for a decompression stream, it could cause the application to crash or, potentially, execute arbitrary code with the Python interpreter's privileges. (CVE-2008-1721)
Red Hat would like to thank David Remahl of the Apple Product Security team for responsibly reporting the CVE-2008-1679 and CVE-2008-2315 issues.
All Python users should upgrade to these updated packages, which contain backported patches to correct these issues.