CVE-2010-4189 in Shockwave Player
Summary
by MITRE
The IML32 module in Adobe Shockwave Player before 11.5.9.620 allows attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (memory corruption) via a Director movie containing a GIF image with a crafted global color table size value, which causes an out-of-range pointer offset.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/16/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2010-4189 represents a critical memory corruption flaw within Adobe Shockwave Player's IML32 module that affects versions prior to 11.5.9.620. This issue stems from inadequate input validation when processing Director movie files that contain GIF images with maliciously crafted global color table size values. The vulnerability operates through a classic buffer overflow mechanism where the application fails to properly bounds-check pointer arithmetic operations during GIF image parsing, leading to unpredictable memory access patterns that can be exploited by malicious actors.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs when a malicious Director movie file containing a specially crafted GIF image is opened within the affected Shockwave Player environment. The GIF format specification defines a global color table that contains palette information for the image, and the vulnerability arises when an attacker manipulates the size field of this color table to exceed the allocated memory boundaries. This manipulation causes the IML32 module to perform pointer arithmetic operations that result in out-of-range memory access, creating opportunities for arbitrary code execution or system instability. The flaw specifically manifests as a heap-based buffer overflow that can be triggered through the improper handling of color table size values during image decompression processes.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability presents significant risks to organizations relying on Shockwave Player for multimedia content delivery, particularly in enterprise environments where users may encounter malicious content through web browsing or email attachments. The attack vector is particularly concerning because it requires only the user to open a malicious Director movie file, making it a client-side exploitation scenario that bypasses traditional network-based security controls. Successful exploitation can result in complete system compromise, allowing attackers to execute arbitrary code with the privileges of the affected user, potentially leading to data theft, system infiltration, or further lateral movement within the network infrastructure.
The vulnerability maps directly to CWE-125, which describes out-of-bounds read conditions, and CWE-787, which covers out-of-bounds write operations. Additionally, this flaw aligns with ATT&CK technique T1203, which involves exploiting software vulnerabilities to gain system access, and T1059, which encompasses command and scripting interpreter usage for exploitation. Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including mandatory security updates to Adobe Shockwave Player to version 11.5.9.620 or later, network-based filtering to block malicious Director movie files, and user education regarding the dangers of opening untrusted multimedia content. System administrators should also consider disabling Shockwave Player functionality in environments where it is not essential, and implement robust application whitelisting policies to prevent execution of untrusted multimedia content. The remediation process should include thorough testing of updated software to ensure compatibility with existing enterprise applications while maintaining security posture against this and similar memory corruption vulnerabilities.