CVE-2014-8442 in Flash Player
Summary
by MITRE
Adobe Flash Player before 13.0.0.252 and 14.x and 15.x before 15.0.0.223 on Windows and OS X and before 11.2.202.418 on Linux, Adobe AIR before 15.0.0.356, Adobe AIR SDK before 15.0.0.356, and Adobe AIR SDK & Compiler before 15.0.0.356 allow attackers to complete a transition from Low Integrity to Medium Integrity by leveraging incorrect permissions.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/24/2022
Adobe Flash Player and Adobe AIR versions prior to specified patches contain a critical privilege escalation vulnerability that allows attackers to transition from low integrity level to medium integrity level on Windows systems. This vulnerability stems from improper permission handling within the application's security model, specifically affecting Windows and macOS platforms with Flash Player versions before 13.0.0.252 and 14.x and 15.x before 15.0.0.223, as well as Linux systems with Flash Player versions before 11.2.202.418. The flaw enables malicious actors to exploit incorrect access controls that should normally prevent such privilege transitions, effectively bypassing the operating system's integrity level protections. This vulnerability directly maps to CWE-276, which addresses incorrect permissions and improper access control, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1068, which covers local privilege escalation through improper access control mechanisms. The impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple privilege escalation, as it provides attackers with the ability to execute arbitrary code with elevated privileges, potentially leading to complete system compromise. When combined with other exploitation techniques, this vulnerability can serve as a critical initial access vector for attackers seeking to establish persistent presence on target systems. The affected Adobe AIR versions including all pre-15.0.0.356 releases are equally vulnerable, indicating that the flaw exists in the underlying runtime environment that Flash Player uses for execution. This vulnerability represents a significant security weakness in Adobe's security model implementation, particularly concerning how the applications handle integrity level transitions. The flaw is particularly dangerous because it operates at the operating system level rather than within the application itself, making it more difficult to detect and mitigate through traditional application-level security measures. Organizations running vulnerable versions of Adobe Flash Player and AIR are at substantial risk of exploitation, as the vulnerability requires minimal prerequisites for exploitation and provides attackers with a reliable path to elevated privileges. The issue highlights the importance of maintaining up-to-date security patches and demonstrates how legacy software components can continue to pose significant risks even after their initial release. System administrators should prioritize immediate patching of all affected versions, as this vulnerability can be exploited remotely without user interaction, making it particularly attractive to automated attack tools. The remediation process requires careful consideration of compatibility issues with existing applications that may depend on the vulnerable Flash Player versions, though the security implications of maintaining unpatched systems far outweigh the potential compatibility concerns.