CVE-2014-0979
The start_authentication function in lightdm-gtk-greeter.c in LightDM GTK+ Greeter before 1.7.1...
The start_authentication function in lightdm-gtk-greeter.c in LightDM GTK+ Greeter before 1.7.1 does not properly handle the return value from the lightdm_greeter_get_authentication_user function, which allows local users to cause a denial of service (NULL pointer dereference) via an empty username.
Exploit likelihood
What each source reports
NVD Score used
2.1
The start_authentication function in lightdm-gtk-greeter.c in LightDM GTK+ Greeter before 1.7.1 does not properly handle the return value from the lightdm_greeter_get_authentication_user function, which allows local users to cause a denial of service (NULL pointer dereference) via an empty username.
- Record
CVE-2014-0979- CVSS 2.0
- 2.1 Low
AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:N/I:N/A:P - Updated
- 2026-11-02
CVE List No score
The start_authentication function in lightdm-gtk-greeter.c in LightDM GTK+ Greeter before 1.7.1 does not properly handle the return value from the lightdm_greeter_get_authentication_user function, which allows local users to cause a denial of service (NULL pointer dereference) via an empty username.
- Record
CVE-2014-0979- Updated
- 2026-11-02
EUVDEUVD-2014-1009 No score
The start_authentication function in lightdm-gtk-greeter.c in LightDM GTK+ Greeter before 1.7.1 does not properly handle the return value from the lightdm_greeter_get_authentication_user function, which allows local users to cause a denial of service (NULL pointer dereference) via an empty username.
- Record
EUVD-2014-1009- Updated
- 2026-11-03
GitHub AdvisoriesGHSA-3wgq-2r52-v65w No score
The start_authentication function in lightdm-gtk-greeter.c in LightDM GTK+ Greeter before 1.7.1...
The start_authentication function in lightdm-gtk-greeter.c in LightDM GTK+ Greeter before 1.7.1 does not properly handle the return value from the lightdm_greeter_get_authentication_user function, which allows local users to cause a denial of service (NULL pointer dereference) via an empty username.
- Record
GHSA-3wgq-2r52-v65w- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSV No score
The start_authentication function in lightdm-gtk-greeter.c in LightDM GTK+ Greeter before 1.7.1 does not properly handle the return value from the lightdm_greeter_get_authentication_user function, which allows local users to cause a denial of service (NULL pointer dereference) via an empty username.
- Record
CVE-2014-0979- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSVDEBIAN-CVE-2014-0979 No score
The start_authentication function in lightdm-gtk-greeter.c in LightDM GTK+ Greeter before 1.7.1 does not properly handle the return value from the lightdm_greeter_get_authentication_user function, which allows local users to cause a denial of service (NULL pointer dereference) via an empty username.
- Record
DEBIAN-CVE-2014-0979- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSVMGASA-2014-0026 No score
Updated lightdm-gtk-greeter fixes CVE-2014-0979
Updated lightdm-gtk-greeter package fixes security vulnerability:
lightdm-gtk-greeter uses the lightdm-gobject API incorrectly and does not handle lightdm_greeter_get_authentication_user() returning NULL when the username of the previous authentication is invalid resulting in a NULL pointer dereference in start_authentication(). This constitutes a local denial of service which can be triggered by any unprivileged attacker requiring the intervention of an administrator to restart lightdm (CVE-2014-0979).
- Record
MGASA-2014-0026- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSVUBUNTU-CVE-2014-0979 No score
The start_authentication function in lightdm-gtk-greeter.c in LightDM GTK+ Greeter before 1.7.1 does not properly handle the return value from the lightdm_greeter_get_authentication_user function, which allows local users to cause a denial of service (NULL pointer dereference) via an empty username.
- Record
UBUNTU-CVE-2014-0979- Updated
- 2026-11-02
Affected products
Affected packages
| Package | Affected | Fixed |
|---|---|---|
lightdm-gtk-greeterDebian:12 |
before 1.6.1-5 | 1.6.1-5 |
lightdm-gtk-greeterDebian:13 |
before 1.6.1-5 | 1.6.1-5 |
lightdm-gtk-greeterDebian:14 |
before 1.6.1-5 | 1.6.1-5 |
lightdm-gtk-greeterMageia:3 |
before 1.3.1-6.1.mga3 | 1.3.1-6.1.mga3 |
History
| Recorded | Changed | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| affected | ||
| aliases | EUVD | |
| first indexed | CVE List, GitHub Advisories, NVD, OSV |
Dates are when Every CVE recorded each change. Upstream dates may differ.
In short
CVE-2014-0979 is a low vulnerability (CVSS 2.1) in Lightdm Gtk\+ Greeter Project Gtk\+ Greeter, published January 23, 2014. No source lists public exploit code. EPSS puts the chance of exploitation in the next 30 days at 0.41%, the 35th percentile. Fixed in lightdm-gtk-greeter 1.6.1-5.
References
securityfocus.com/bid/64679
lists.fedoraproject.org/pipermail/package-announce/2014-February/128150.html
bugzilla.novell.com/show_bug.cgi?id=857303
openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2014/01/07/15
lists.fedoraproject.org/pipermail/package-announce/2014-February/128117.html
lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-updates/2014-01/msg00048.html
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secunia.com/advisories/56211
bugs.launchpad.net/lightdm-gtk-greeter/+bug/1266449
secunia.com/advisories/56423
nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2014-0979
github.com/advisories/GHSA-3wgq-2r52-v65w
security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2014-0979
advisories.mageia.org/MGASA-2014-0026.html
openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2014/01/07/5
bugs.mageia.org/show_bug.cgi?id=12238
ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2014-0979
cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2014-0979