CVE-2012-4165 in Flash Player
Summary
by MITRE
Adobe Flash Player before 10.3.183.23 and 11.x before 11.4.402.265 on Windows and Mac OS X, before 10.3.183.23 and 11.x before 11.2.202.238 on Linux, before 11.1.111.16 on Android 2.x and 3.x, and before 11.1.115.17 on Android 4.x; Adobe AIR before 3.4.0.2540; and Adobe AIR SDK before 3.4.0.2540 allow attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (memory corruption) via unspecified vectors, a different vulnerability than CVE-2012-4163 and CVE-2012-4164.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/27/2021
Adobe Flash Player versions prior to specific patches across multiple operating systems contained a critical memory corruption vulnerability that enabled remote code execution and denial of service attacks. This vulnerability affected Windows and Mac OS X systems running Flash Player versions before 10.3.183.23 and 11.x before 11.4.402.265, Linux systems before 10.3.183.23 and 11.x before 11.2.202.238, Android 2.x and 3.x systems before 11.1.111.16, and Android 4.x systems before 11.1.115.17. Additionally, Adobe AIR versions before 3.4.0.2540 and AIR SDK versions before 3.4.0.2540 were also impacted by this vulnerability. The flaw manifested through unspecified attack vectors that resulted in memory corruption, allowing attackers to execute arbitrary code on affected systems or cause system crashes. This vulnerability represents a classic heap-based buffer overflow condition that could be exploited through malformed Flash content delivered via web browsers or other Flash Player applications. The memory corruption issue falls under CWE-121, heap-based buffer overflow, which is a well-documented weakness in software systems. Attackers could leverage this vulnerability by crafting malicious Flash content that would trigger the memory corruption when processed by the vulnerable Flash Player components. The exploitability of this vulnerability was particularly concerning given Flash Player's widespread deployment across enterprise environments and consumer systems, making it an attractive target for cybercriminals seeking to compromise user devices. The vulnerability's impact extended beyond simple denial of service scenarios, as successful exploitation could result in complete system compromise, enabling attackers to execute malicious code with the privileges of the Flash Player process. This type of vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1059.007 for command and scripting interpreter, where attackers could potentially establish persistent access through the executed malicious code. The affected platforms included not just traditional desktop operating systems but also mobile platforms, demonstrating the broad scope of impact. The vulnerability's classification as a memory corruption issue indicates that it likely involved improper handling of memory allocation and deallocation during Flash Player processing, creating opportunities for attackers to manipulate memory structures and redirect execution flow. Security researchers identified that the vulnerability was distinct from related issues CVE-2012-4163 and CVE-2012-4164, suggesting multiple attack vectors or different exploitation mechanisms within the Flash Player codebase. Organizations were advised to immediately deploy patches for all affected versions of Flash Player and AIR to prevent exploitation. The vulnerability highlighted the ongoing security challenges associated with rich media platforms and the importance of maintaining up-to-date security patches for widely deployed software components. System administrators needed to implement comprehensive patch management strategies to address this vulnerability across all supported platforms, including mobile operating systems where Flash Player was still actively used. The memory corruption nature of the vulnerability required careful analysis of how Flash Player handled external content and resource management, as these areas typically present the highest risk for such memory-related exploits.