CVE-2015-0350 in Flash Player
Summary
by MITRE
Adobe Flash Player before 13.0.0.281 and 14.x through 17.x before 17.0.0.169 on Windows and OS X and before 11.2.202.457 on Linux allows attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (memory corruption) via unspecified vectors, a different vulnerability than CVE-2015-0347, CVE-2015-0352, CVE-2015-0353, CVE-2015-0354, CVE-2015-0355, CVE-2015-0360, CVE-2015-3038, CVE-2015-3041, CVE-2015-3042, and CVE-2015-3043.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/06/2022
Adobe Flash Player versions prior to 13.0.0.281 on Windows and OS X, and versions 14.x through 17.x before 17.0.0.169 on the same platforms, as well as versions before 11.2.202.457 on Linux, contained a critical memory corruption vulnerability that enabled remote code execution attacks. This vulnerability represents a distinct threat vector from other related flaws in the same vulnerability series, specifically excluding CVE-2015-0347 through CVE-2015-3043. The flaw manifested as a memory corruption issue that could be exploited by attackers to execute arbitrary code on affected systems or cause denial of service conditions, making it particularly dangerous for enterprise environments where Flash Player was commonly used for multimedia content delivery.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from improper memory handling within the Flash Player runtime environment, specifically in how the software managed memory allocation and deallocation during content processing. Attackers could craft malicious Flash content that would trigger buffer overflows or other memory corruption conditions when processed by the vulnerable Flash Player versions. This type of vulnerability typically falls under CWE-125, which describes "Out-of-bounds Read" conditions, or CWE-787, representing "Out-of-bounds Write" scenarios, both of which are common in memory corruption exploits. The vulnerability's exploitation capability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1059.007 for "Command and Scripting Interpreter: JavaScript" and T1068 for "Exploitation for Privilege Escalation" when successful exploitation occurs.
The operational impact of this vulnerability was significant across multiple attack vectors and platforms, as it affected both Windows and OS X operating systems with the older Flash Player versions, while also impacting Linux systems with the older versions. The broad scope of affected versions meant that organizations running legacy Flash Player installations were at risk, particularly those that had not yet migrated to newer versions or had delayed updates due to compatibility concerns. This vulnerability demonstrated how widely deployed multimedia frameworks could become attack surfaces, especially when they remained unpatched for extended periods. The memory corruption nature of the flaw made it particularly challenging to defend against, as traditional signature-based detection mechanisms would struggle to identify the specific exploitation patterns, requiring more advanced behavioral analysis approaches.
Organizations should have implemented immediate patch management procedures to upgrade to patched versions of Flash Player, specifically versions 13.0.0.281 and later for Windows and OS X, 17.0.0.169 and later for the same platforms, and 11.2.202.457 and later for Linux systems. The mitigation strategy should have included disabling Flash Player in web browsers where possible, implementing network-based security controls such as web application firewalls to filter malicious Flash content, and conducting comprehensive vulnerability assessments to identify all instances of the vulnerable software. Security teams needed to monitor for exploitation attempts through network traffic analysis and endpoint detection systems, as this vulnerability could be leveraged for initial access or lateral movement within compromised networks. The vulnerability highlighted the importance of maintaining up-to-date security patches and the risks associated with continuing to use deprecated software components, particularly those with known vulnerabilities that persist across multiple versions.