Secure integration of multiprotocol instant messenger

Abstract

Pidgin communicator is a multiprotocol instant messenger client, developed by open source community. It was originally a third party client of AIM (AOL Instant Messenger) protocol for Linux operating system founded in 1998. At present, its main goal is to provide common interface for every protocol it supports, so the user does not need care about protocol to use or peer's IM identifier, while he just want to talk with a Bob. The work focuses mainly on security and functionality aspects like password storage strategies, integration with plugins which provide privacy of communication. This paper shares experiences has been gained during the process of developing and replacement of existing code for version of Pidgin 3.0.0. The project realizes the list of suggestions, mainly concerning security, which has been created after code review and provide some new technical solutions that can be implemented in the future versions.