CVE-2012-4505: Heap-based buffer overflow in the px_pac_reload function in lib/pac.c in libproxy 0.2.x and 0.3.x allows re...

Security readout for executives and security teams

This flaw affects older libproxy versions that download proxy auto-configuration files. A malicious or compromised server responding to a proxy.pac request could trigger a heap buffer overflow through a crafted Content-Length header. The public record says the impact is unspecified, so business risk depends on where these legacy packages remain deployed. Exposure is most likely on legacy Linux systems or applications using libproxy 0.2.x or 0.3.x and configured to retrieve PAC files, especially over HTTP. The bundle lists vendor advisories from Debian, Ubuntu, Red Hat, and openSUSE, indicating packaged distribution exposure in 2012-era systems. Treat this as a legacy exposure cleanup item unless affected systems still retrieve PAC files from untrusted or interceptable locations. There is no provided evidence of active exploitation, but vendor advisories show the flaw was important enough for distribution security updates. Mitigation focus: Apply the relevant libproxy security update from your OS vendor advisory.; Prioritize systems that automatically retrieve proxy.pac files over HTTP.; Retire or isolate unsupported systems still running libproxy 0.2.x or 0.3.x..

Prepared

Jun 24, 2026, 12:04 UTC (UTC+00:00)

Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.