CVE-2010-2862 in Acrobat Reader
Summary
by MITRE
Integer overflow in CoolType.dll in Adobe Reader 8.2.3 and 9.3.3, and Acrobat 9.3.3, allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a TrueType font with a large maxCompositePoints value in a Maximum Profile (maxp) table.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/27/2025
The vulnerability described in CVE-2010-2862 represents a critical integer overflow condition within Adobe Reader's CoolType.dll component that affects versions 8.2.3 and 9.3.3 of Adobe Reader and Acrobat 9.3.3. This flaw occurs when processing TrueType font files, specifically when encountering a Maximum Profile (maxp) table containing an excessive maxCompositePoints value that exceeds the bounds of a 32-bit integer. The vulnerability falls under the CWE-190 category of Integer Overflow or Wraparound, which is classified as a fundamental weakness in the program's ability to handle numerical values beyond their intended capacity. The issue manifests when the application attempts to allocate memory based on the maliciously inflated maxCompositePoints value, leading to a situation where the calculated memory allocation becomes insufficient to accommodate the actual data requirements.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple code execution to encompass potential system compromise through remote code execution capabilities. Attackers can craft malicious TrueType font files with deliberately inflated maxCompositePoints values that cause the CoolType.dll component to overflow integer values during memory allocation calculations. When Adobe Reader processes such fonts, particularly during font rendering operations, the integer overflow results in memory corruption that can be exploited to overwrite critical program memory locations. This type of vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1059.007 for Command and Scripting Interpreter, specifically involving the execution of malicious code through document processing. The exploitation vector typically involves embedding the malicious font within a PDF document, which when opened by the vulnerable Adobe Reader version triggers the overflow condition and subsequent code execution.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability requires a deep understanding of both the font processing mechanisms within Adobe Reader and the underlying memory management patterns that govern how CoolType.dll handles font data structures. The maxp table in TrueType fonts contains metadata about font characteristics including the maximum number of points in any composite glyph, and when this value is artificially inflated beyond the integer limits, it causes the application to miscalculate the required memory allocation. This memory allocation failure creates a predictable memory corruption pattern that attackers can leverage to inject and execute arbitrary code within the Adobe Reader process context. The vulnerability demonstrates a classic buffer overflow scenario where integer arithmetic errors lead to insufficient memory allocation, creating conditions for memory corruption that can be exploited through carefully crafted input data. Organizations must recognize that this vulnerability represents a significant risk to document security, particularly in environments where PDF documents are frequently opened and processed without proper security controls. The remediation approach requires immediate patching of affected Adobe Reader versions, along with implementing additional security controls such as PDF sandboxing, restricted font processing, and network-level filtering of potentially malicious documents to prevent exploitation attempts.