A ppp security update has been released for Ubuntu Linux 14.04 ESM and 12.04 ESM to address an issue where ppp could be made to crash.

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Ubuntu Security Notice USN-4288-2
March 02, 2020

ppp vulnerability
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A security issue affects these releases of Ubuntu and its derivatives:

- Ubuntu 14.04 ESM
- Ubuntu 12.04 ESM

Summary:

ppp could be made to crash or run programs if it received specially crafted network traffic.

Software Description:
- ppp: Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP)

Details:

USN-4288-1 fixed a vulnerability in ppp. This update provides
the corresponding update for Ubuntu 12.04 ESM and Ubuntu 14.04 ESM.

Original advisory details:

It was discovered that ppp incorrectly handled certain rhostname values. A
remote attacker could use this issue to cause ppp to crash, resulting in a
denial of service, or possibly execute arbitrary code.

Update instructions:

The problem can be corrected by updating your system to the following
package versions:

Ubuntu 14.04 ESM:
ppp 2.4.5-5.1ubuntu2.3+esm1

Ubuntu 12.04 ESM:
ppp 2.4.5-5ubuntu1.3

In general, a standard system update will make all the necessary changes.

References:
  https://usn.ubuntu.com/4288-2
  https://usn.ubuntu.com/4288-1
CVE-2020-8597