CVE-2014-0544 in Flash Player
Summary
by MITRE
Adobe Flash Player before 13.0.0.241 and 14.x before 14.0.0.176 on Windows and OS X and before 11.2.202.400 on Linux, Adobe AIR before 14.0.0.178 on Windows and OS X and before 14.0.0.179 on Android, Adobe AIR SDK before 14.0.0.178, and Adobe AIR SDK & Compiler before 14.0.0.178 do not properly restrict discovery of memory addresses, which allows attackers to bypass the ASLR protection mechanism via unspecified vectors, a different vulnerability than CVE-2014-0540, CVE-2014-0542, CVE-2014-0543, and CVE-2014-0545.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/10/2022
Adobe Flash Player and Adobe AIR implementations contained a critical vulnerability that enabled attackers to bypass Address Space Layout Randomization protections through improper memory address discovery mechanisms. This vulnerability affected multiple product versions across different platforms including Windows, OS X, and Linux operating systems. The flaw specifically targeted the memory management functions that were responsible for maintaining the randomized memory layout protections designed to prevent exploitation of memory corruption vulnerabilities.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from insufficient restrictions on memory address discovery within the Flash Player and AIR runtime environments. Attackers could leverage this weakness to obtain predictable memory addresses that would normally be randomized by ASLR mechanisms, effectively nullifying the security protection. This particular vulnerability operated through unspecified vectors that differed from other contemporaneous vulnerabilities in the same advisory, specifically excluding CVE-2014-0540, CVE-2014-0542, CVE-2014-0543, and CVE-2014-0545, indicating a distinct exploitation methodology. The flaw essentially allowed attackers to map out the memory layout of processes running Flash content, providing them with the information necessary to craft more sophisticated exploits.
The operational impact of this vulnerability was significant as it undermined fundamental operating system security protections that had been implemented to prevent exploitation of other memory corruption vulnerabilities. When ASLR protections were bypassed, attackers could more easily exploit other vulnerabilities present in Flash Player and AIR applications, as they no longer needed to perform the additional step of address space discovery during exploitation. This vulnerability represented a critical weakness in the security architecture of Adobe's runtime environments and could enable attackers to perform privilege escalation, execute arbitrary code, or gain unauthorized access to systems running affected software versions. The impact extended beyond individual user systems to enterprise environments where Flash Player was widely deployed.
Organizations should have immediately updated to the patched versions of Adobe Flash Player and Adobe AIR as specified in the advisory, with particular attention to the version numbers mentioned for each platform. System administrators needed to ensure comprehensive patch management across all affected platforms including Windows, OS X, and Linux systems. The vulnerability highlighted the importance of maintaining current security patches for runtime environments and the risks associated with running outdated Flash Player implementations. Security teams should have implemented monitoring for exploitation attempts targeting this specific vulnerability and considered temporary disabling of Flash content in environments where it was not essential for operations. This vulnerability demonstrated the critical nature of protecting against information disclosure flaws that can undermine multiple layers of security protection.
This vulnerability aligns with CWE-200, which describes improper exposure of sensitive information, and relates to the broader category of information leakage vulnerabilities that can compromise system security. The attack pattern corresponds to techniques described in the MITRE ATT&CK framework under T1059.007 for command and scripting interpreter, where bypassing ASLR mechanisms enables more effective exploitation of other vulnerabilities. The flaw represents a classic example of how seemingly minor implementation issues in security-critical software components can create significant risks for entire computing environments.