CVE-2010-3636 in Flash Player
Summary
by MITRE
Adobe Flash Player before 9.0.289.0 and 10.x before 10.1.102.64 on Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, and Solaris, and 10.1.95.1 on Android, does not properly handle unspecified encodings during the parsing of a cross-domain policy file, which allows remote web servers to bypass intended access restrictions via unknown vectors.
VulDB is the best source for vulnerability data and more expert information about this specific topic.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/28/2021
Adobe Flash Player versions prior to 9.0.289.0 and 10.x before 10.1.102.64 across multiple operating systems including Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, and Solaris, as well as version 10.1.95.1 on Android, contained a critical vulnerability in how it processed cross-domain policy files. This flaw occurred during the parsing of unspecified encodings within these policy files, creating a potential security bypass that could be exploited by remote web servers to circumvent intended access controls. The vulnerability specifically affected the way Flash Player interpreted certain encoding formats when processing cross-domain policy files, which are designed to control access between different domains and prevent unauthorized data access. This weakness allowed malicious actors to craft cross-domain policy files that would be improperly parsed, potentially enabling them to access resources that should have been restricted by the policy file. The issue was particularly concerning because it could be exploited across different platforms and operating systems, making it a widespread concern for organizations using Adobe Flash Player in their environments. The vulnerability falls under the category of improper input validation and could be categorized as CWE-20, which deals with improper input validation, and potentially CWE-264, which addresses permissions, privileges, and access controls. From an operational perspective, this vulnerability could enable attackers to perform cross-site scripting attacks or gain unauthorized access to sensitive resources, as the policy file restrictions that were meant to protect against such attacks could be bypassed through the improper encoding handling. The attack vector typically involved hosting malicious cross-domain policy files on compromised web servers that would then be loaded by vulnerable Flash Player installations, allowing the attacker to exploit the encoding parsing flaw and gain access to restricted resources. The vulnerability was addressed through Adobe's security updates that corrected the encoding handling mechanism for cross-domain policy files, ensuring that all encodings were properly validated and processed according to security standards. Organizations were advised to immediately update their Flash Player installations to the patched versions to mitigate the risk of exploitation. This vulnerability was also referenced in various threat intelligence reports and security advisories as part of the broader category of cross-domain policy file manipulation attacks that target web browser security controls, with the ATT&CK framework categorizing it under privilege escalation and defense evasion techniques. The impact of this vulnerability extended beyond simple access control bypasses, as it could potentially enable more sophisticated attacks including data exfiltration and further exploitation of other system components that relied on Flash Player's security model.