CVE-2013-5324 in Flash Player
Summary
by MITRE
Adobe Flash Player before 11.7.700.242 and 11.8.x before 11.8.800.168 on Windows and Mac OS X, before 11.2.202.310 on Linux, before 11.1.111.73 on Android 2.x and 3.x, and before 11.1.115.81 on Android 4.x; Adobe AIR before 3.8.0.1430; and Adobe AIR SDK & Compiler before 3.8.0.1430 allow attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (memory corruption) via unspecified vectors, a different vulnerability than CVE-2013-3361, CVE-2013-3362, and CVE-2013-3363.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/24/2021
Adobe Flash Player versions prior to specific patched releases contained a critical memory corruption vulnerability that enabled remote code execution and denial of service attacks. This vulnerability affected multiple operating systems including Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, and various Android versions, with distinct affected ranges for each platform. The flaw manifested as an unspecified vector within the Flash Player runtime that could be exploited to corrupt memory structures, potentially allowing attackers to execute arbitrary code on affected systems. The vulnerability was distinct from other related issues such as CVE-2013-3361, CVE-2013-3362, and CVE-2013-3363, indicating it represented a separate code path or memory handling issue within the Flash Player component. This type of memory corruption vulnerability typically falls under CWE-122, which describes heap-based buffer overflow conditions, or CWE-125, which covers out-of-bounds read conditions. The attack surface was particularly broad given Flash Player's widespread deployment across multiple platforms and operating systems, making it an attractive target for cybercriminals seeking to leverage a single exploit across diverse environments. The vulnerability's impact extended beyond simple code execution to include potential denial of service scenarios where system resources could be exhausted or corrupted, leading to application crashes or system instability.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability involved crafting malicious Flash content that would trigger memory corruption when processed by the affected Flash Player versions. Attackers could deliver this malicious content through various vectors including web browsers, email attachments, or compromised websites, with the attack chain typically beginning with user interaction with the malicious Flash content. The memory corruption could occur during normal Flash Player operations such as parsing multimedia content, handling user input, or processing complex animations, making the attack surface quite broad. From an operational perspective, this vulnerability represented a significant risk to organizations relying on Flash Player for web content delivery, as it could be exploited without requiring user interaction beyond visiting a compromised website. The vulnerability's presence in Adobe AIR applications further extended the attack surface to desktop and mobile environments, as AIR applications could be similarly affected by the underlying Flash Player memory corruption issue. The exploitation process would typically involve creating a malicious SWF file that when loaded by the vulnerable Flash Player would trigger the memory corruption, potentially leading to code execution with the privileges of the Flash Player process. This vulnerability was particularly concerning because it could be exploited through web-based attacks without requiring any additional software installation or system modifications from the attacker's perspective.
Organizations faced significant operational challenges in mitigating this vulnerability due to the widespread deployment of Flash Player across multiple platforms and versions. The remediation process required coordinated patching across different operating systems and mobile platforms, with specific version requirements for each affected platform. System administrators needed to implement comprehensive patch management strategies to ensure all vulnerable Flash Player installations were updated promptly. The vulnerability's impact on mobile platforms including Android 2.x, 3.x, and 4.x created additional complexity for organizations with mobile device management requirements, as these platforms required specific patch versions to address the issue. Security teams needed to monitor for exploitation attempts through network traffic analysis, web application firewalls, and endpoint detection systems to identify potential attacks targeting this vulnerability. The ATT&CK framework would categorize this vulnerability under T1203, which covers Exploitation for Client Execution, and potentially T1059, which covers Command and Scripting Interpreter, as attackers could leverage the vulnerability to execute arbitrary code on target systems. Organizations implementing zero-trust security models would need to ensure that Flash Player components were properly isolated and monitored, as the vulnerability could be used to establish persistent access to compromised systems. The remediation process also required careful consideration of compatibility issues with legacy applications that depended on Flash Player functionality, as immediate patching could potentially break existing applications that were not yet updated to support newer Flash Player versions.