# CVE-2002-0909: Memory corruption in n/a

> Remote attackers can execute arbitrary code via malicious NNTP responses, while local users can escalate privileges through long command-line arguments or environment variables.

- **Severity:** High 7.5 (`AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 31 Aug 2002
- **Updated:** 8 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-hj97-vw72-q695

## What is CVE-2002-0909?

CVE-2002-0909 is a high-severity memory corruption vulnerability in n/a, published on 31 Aug 2002. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Multiple buffer overflows in mnews 1.22 and earlier allow (1) a remote NNTP server to execute arbitrary code via long responses, or local users can gain privileges via long command line arguments (2) -f, (3) -n, (4) -D, (5) -M, or (6) -P, or via long environment variables (7) JNAMES or (8) MAILSERVER.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2002-0909?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Matsushita Research Mnews.

## How do I fix CVE-2002-0909?

No fix has been published for CVE-2002-0909 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2002-0909 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2002-0909 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2002-0909 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2002-0909 is a high-severity memory corruption vulnerability in n/a, published on 31 Aug 2002. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2002-0909 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: n/a. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2002-0909/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2002-0909/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2002-0909
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2002-0909
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2002-0909

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2002-0909/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.