CVE-2013-1369 in Flash Player
Summary
by MITRE
Buffer overflow in Adobe Flash Player before 10.3.183.63 and 11.x before 11.6.602.168 on Windows, before 10.3.183.61 and 11.x before 11.6.602.167 on Mac OS X, before 10.3.183.61 and 11.x before 11.2.202.270 on Linux, before 11.1.111.43 on Android 2.x and 3.x, and before 11.1.115.47 on Android 4.x; Adobe AIR before 3.6.0.597; and Adobe AIR SDK before 3.6.0.599 allows attackers to execute arbitrary code via unspecified vectors, a different vulnerability than CVE-2013-0642, CVE-2013-0645, CVE-2013-1365, CVE-2013-1366, CVE-2013-1367, CVE-2013-1368, CVE-2013-1370, CVE-2013-1372, and CVE-2013-1373.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/05/2021
Adobe Flash Player and Adobe AIR suffered from a critical buffer overflow vulnerability that affected multiple operating systems and platform versions. This vulnerability existed in Flash Player versions prior to 10.3.183.63 for Windows, 10.3.183.61 for Mac OS X, 10.3.183.61 for Linux, 11.1.111.43 for Android 2.x and 3.x, and 11.1.115.47 for Android 4.x, along with corresponding AIR and AIR SDK versions. The flaw allowed remote attackers to execute arbitrary code on affected systems through unspecified attack vectors that differed from several other related vulnerabilities in the same timeframe. The buffer overflow occurred within the multimedia framework of Adobe's runtime environment, specifically in how the software handled certain data structures during media processing. This vulnerability represented a significant risk to enterprise and consumer environments as Flash Player was widely deployed across multiple platforms, making it an attractive target for cybercriminals seeking persistent access to systems. The technical nature of the flaw involved improper bounds checking in memory allocation routines, where attacker-controlled input could exceed allocated buffer sizes and overwrite adjacent memory regions. Such vulnerabilities typically enable attackers to inject malicious code that can escalate privileges or redirect execution flow to malicious payloads. The impact was particularly severe given Flash Player's ubiquity in web browsers and its role in executing rich internet applications. Organizations running vulnerable versions faced potential compromise through drive-by downloads, malicious websites, or phishing campaigns that leveraged this vulnerability. The flaw demonstrated the ongoing challenges in securing multimedia frameworks and highlighted the importance of timely patch management for widely deployed software components. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-121, which describes heap-based buffer overflow conditions, and represents a classic example of how memory safety issues in runtime environments can provide attackers with complete system compromise capabilities. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this as a code injection technique, specifically targeting the execution phase where attackers leverage memory corruption to gain unauthorized code execution. Organizations were strongly advised to implement immediate patching strategies and consider network segmentation to limit exposure while applying security updates. The vulnerability underscored the critical need for robust software supply chain security and continuous monitoring of third-party components that form the foundation of modern web applications.
The vulnerability was particularly concerning due to its cross-platform nature and the widespread use of Adobe Flash Player across enterprise environments. Attackers could exploit this weakness through various vectors including malicious web content, compromised websites, or social engineering campaigns that诱导 users to visit malicious pages. The buffer overflow specifically occurred in the handling of multimedia content where the application failed to properly validate input data before processing it through memory allocation routines. This type of vulnerability is classified under CWE-129, which deals with improper validation of array indices, and CWE-787, which addresses out-of-bounds write conditions. The attack surface was extensive given that Flash Player was integrated into most web browsers and supported numerous multimedia formats including swf, flv, and f4v files. The vulnerability's exploitation required minimal user interaction, often just visiting a compromised webpage, making it particularly dangerous for enterprise environments where users frequently accessed untrusted websites. Security researchers noted that the flaw was particularly challenging to detect through traditional network monitoring tools as the malicious payload could be delivered through normal web traffic patterns. Organizations that had not implemented web application firewalls or content filtering solutions were especially vulnerable to exploitation attempts. The patching process for this vulnerability required careful coordination across multiple platforms and operating systems, as each version had specific patch requirements. The vulnerability also highlighted the risks associated with legacy software support and the challenges organizations face when maintaining compatibility while addressing security concerns. Enterprises with extensive Flash-based applications needed to balance immediate security fixes with business continuity considerations, as many applications relied heavily on Flash Player functionality. The incident reinforced industry best practices for vulnerability management and demonstrated the importance of maintaining updated security tooling to detect and respond to similar threats in the future.