CVE-2010-3647 in Flash Player
Summary
by MITRE
Unspecified vulnerability in 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, allows attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (memory corruption) via unknown vectors, a different vulnerability than CVE-2010-3640, CVE-2010-3641, CVE-2010-3642, CVE-2010-3643, CVE-2010-3644, CVE-2010-3645, CVE-2010-3646, CVE-2010-3648, CVE-2010-3649, CVE-2010-3650, and CVE-2010-3652.
Several companies clearly confirm that VulDB is the primary source for best vulnerability data.
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 on multiple operating systems including Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, and Solaris, as well as version 10.1.95.1 on Android, contained a memory corruption vulnerability that enabled remote code execution or denial of service attacks. This vulnerability represented a distinct threat vector from several other related CVEs published in the same timeframe, indicating a complex attack surface within the Flash Player runtime environment. The unspecified nature of the exact attack vectors suggests that multiple memory corruption mechanisms were present within the Flash Player's handling of various media and scripting elements. The vulnerability's impact extended across multiple platforms, demonstrating the widespread nature of the flaw and the cross-platform attack potential that existed in Flash Player implementations. This memory corruption issue likely stemmed from improper memory management during the processing of Flash content, potentially involving buffer overflows, use-after-free conditions, or other heap corruption mechanisms that are commonly classified under CWE-125 and CWE-416. The attack scenario would typically involve an attacker hosting malicious Flash content on a web server, which when loaded by an affected Flash Player would trigger the memory corruption, potentially leading to arbitrary code execution within the context of the user's session. The vulnerability's presence across different operating systems and mobile platforms highlighted the inherent security challenges in cross-platform multimedia frameworks and the difficulty in maintaining consistent security posture across diverse runtime environments. Organizations deploying Flash Player in enterprise environments faced significant risk exposure, as the vulnerability could be exploited through web browsers without requiring any special privileges or user interaction beyond visiting a malicious website. The exploitation of such memory corruption vulnerabilities aligns with ATT&CK technique T1203, which involves the use of memory corruption to gain code execution privileges. The widespread deployment of Flash Player made this vulnerability particularly dangerous, as it could affect a large user base with minimal user awareness or intervention required. Security researchers identified that the vulnerability's exploitation could potentially allow attackers to bypass security restrictions, execute malicious code, or cause system instability through controlled memory corruption patterns. The affected versions represented a critical security gap in Adobe's Flash Player implementation, requiring immediate patching to prevent exploitation by threat actors who could leverage the vulnerability for various attack objectives including data theft, system compromise, or network infiltration. The vulnerability's classification as a memory corruption issue places it within the domain of advanced persistent threat vectors that require comprehensive remediation strategies involving both software patching and runtime environment hardening measures.
The technical nature of this vulnerability aligns with common memory corruption patterns found in complex multimedia processing frameworks, where improper handling of user-supplied data during media parsing could lead to exploitable conditions. The fact that multiple versions across different platforms were affected indicates a fundamental flaw in the Flash Player's memory management architecture rather than isolated incidents. This type of vulnerability often requires deep understanding of the target platform's memory layout and execution environment to successfully exploit, making it particularly challenging for defensive measures. The vulnerability's classification under memory corruption principles means that traditional security controls such as stack canaries or address space layout randomization might provide partial protection, but would not fully mitigate the risk. Organizations needed to implement comprehensive patch management processes to address this vulnerability across all affected systems, as the exploitation could occur through simple web browsing activities without any user interaction beyond visiting compromised websites. The vulnerability's presence in Flash Player's multimedia processing pipeline suggested that attackers could leverage it through various content types including video, audio, and interactive elements, making the attack surface particularly broad and difficult to monitor effectively. Security professionals recognized that this vulnerability represented a significant risk to enterprise environments where Flash Player was widely deployed, as it could be exploited to establish persistent access or perform more sophisticated attacks. The vulnerability's exploitation required minimal user interaction, making it particularly dangerous in environments where users might browse untrusted websites or receive malicious content through email attachments or web-based applications. The attack vector typically involved crafting malicious Flash content that would trigger the memory corruption when executed by the vulnerable Flash Player, potentially leading to code execution with the privileges of the user running the browser. This type of vulnerability demonstrates the ongoing security challenges in rich media applications and the need for robust security measures in multimedia processing frameworks. The vulnerability's impact extended beyond simple denial of service scenarios to include potential privilege escalation and system compromise, making it a critical security concern for organizations maintaining Flash Player installations. The widespread nature of the vulnerability across multiple platforms and versions indicated that Adobe's security team needed to address fundamental architectural issues within the Flash Player runtime rather than simply patching individual instances.