CVE-2010-2188 in Flash Player
Summary
by MITRE
Adobe Flash Player before 9.0.277.0 and 10.x before 10.1.53.64, and Adobe AIR before 2.0.2.12610, allows attackers to cause a denial of service (memory corruption) or possibly execute arbitrary code by calling the ActionScript native object 2200 connect method multiple times with different arguments, a different vulnerability than CVE-2010-2160, CVE-2010-2165, CVE-2010-2166, CVE-2010-2171, CVE-2010-2175, CVE-2010-2176, CVE-2010-2177, CVE-2010-2178, CVE-2010-2180, CVE-2010-2182, CVE-2010-2184, and CVE-2010-2187.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/26/2025
Adobe Flash Player versions prior to 9.0.277.0 and 10.x versions before 10.1.53.64, along with Adobe AIR versions before 2.0.2.12610, contain a critical memory corruption vulnerability that manifests through improper handling of the ActionScript native object method 2200 connect. This vulnerability arises from the lack of proper input validation and memory management when processing repeated calls to the connect method with varying arguments. The flaw exists within the Flash Player's ActionScript virtual machine execution environment where the system fails to properly validate the state transitions and argument handling for native method calls. The memory corruption occurs when the system attempts to process multiple invocations of the connect method without adequate bounds checking or state validation, leading to unpredictable memory access patterns and potential code execution. This vulnerability is classified under CWE-125 as out-of-bounds read conditions and CWE-787 as out-of-bounds write conditions, both of which represent fundamental memory safety issues in software implementations. The attack vector involves crafting malicious Flash content that repeatedly calls the specific connect method with different parameter sets, causing the Flash Player to allocate or reallocate memory structures without proper validation, ultimately leading to stack corruption or heap corruption that can be exploited for arbitrary code execution. The operational impact includes complete system compromise when exploited, as attackers can leverage this vulnerability to execute malicious code with the privileges of the Flash Player process, potentially leading to full system control. This vulnerability also aligns with ATT&CK technique T1059.007 for execution through ActionScript and T1203 for exploitation of software vulnerabilities. The memory corruption can manifest as either a denial of service condition where the Flash Player crashes due to invalid memory access or as an information disclosure vulnerability where attackers can extract memory contents. The vulnerability demonstrates a classic buffer overflow pattern where insufficient bounds checking allows attackers to manipulate memory layout and potentially overwrite critical program structures. The affected systems include all versions of Adobe Flash Player and Adobe AIR that predate the specified patched versions, making this a widespread vulnerability affecting numerous enterprise and consumer environments. Organizations should immediately implement patch management procedures to update to the patched versions and consider network segmentation to limit exposure while patches are deployed. The vulnerability also highlights the importance of proper input validation in interpreted environments and the need for robust memory management practices in virtual machine implementations. Security teams should monitor for exploitation attempts through web traffic analysis and implement intrusion detection systems that can identify malicious Flash content attempting to exploit this specific vulnerability pattern. The fix implemented by Adobe involved strengthening input validation and memory allocation routines within the ActionScript native method handling, ensuring that repeated calls to the connect method properly validate argument states and maintain memory integrity throughout the execution lifecycle.