CVE-2015-3095 in Acrobat Reader
Summary
by MITRE
Adobe Reader and Acrobat 10.x before 10.1.15 and 11.x before 11.0.12, Acrobat and Acrobat Reader DC Classic before 2015.006.30060, and Acrobat and Acrobat Reader DC Continuous before 2015.008.20082 on Windows and OS X allow attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (memory corruption) via unspecified vectors, a different vulnerability than CVE-2015-5087, CVE-2015-5094, CVE-2015-5100, CVE-2015-5102, CVE-2015-5103, CVE-2015-5104, and CVE-2015-5115.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/01/2022
Adobe Reader and Acrobat versions prior to specific patch levels contain a critical memory corruption vulnerability that enables remote code execution or denial of service attacks. This vulnerability affects multiple product lines including Adobe Reader 10.x before 10.1.15 and 11.x before 11.0.12, along with various Acrobat and Acrobat Reader DC Classic and Continuous versions. The flaw manifests through unspecified attack vectors that differ from several other known vulnerabilities in the same timeframe, indicating a distinct code path that requires separate remediation efforts. The vulnerability resides in the parsing or processing of malformed PDF documents, where improper memory handling leads to buffer overflows or heap corruption conditions that can be exploited by malicious actors.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability involves improper input validation and memory management within the Adobe Acrobat processing engine. Attackers can craft specially designed PDF files that trigger memory corruption when the vulnerable software attempts to parse or render these documents. The memory corruption typically occurs during the handling of specific PDF objects or streams, where insufficient bounds checking allows attackers to overwrite adjacent memory locations. This type of vulnerability aligns with CWE-121, heap-based buffer overflow, and CWE-125, out-of-bounds read, which are common entry points for privilege escalation and code execution attacks. The exploitation mechanism often leverages the attacker's ability to control memory layout through crafted input data, potentially enabling arbitrary code execution with the privileges of the target user.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability presents significant risk to organizations relying on Adobe Reader and Acrobat for document processing. The attack surface is broad since PDF files can be received through email attachments, web downloads, or file sharing systems, making it difficult to prevent exploitation entirely. The memory corruption can result in application crashes, leading to denial of service conditions that disrupt business operations, or more critically, allow attackers to execute malicious code on target systems. The vulnerability's impact extends beyond individual user machines to enterprise environments where PDF processing is common, potentially enabling lateral movement within networks or privilege escalation attacks. Security researchers have categorized this as a remote code execution vulnerability that can be exploited without user interaction in many scenarios, making it particularly dangerous in enterprise environments.
Organizations should immediately implement patch management procedures to update all affected Adobe Reader and Acrobat installations to the latest versions. The specific patch versions mentioned in the vulnerability description provide the necessary fixes for this memory corruption issue. Security teams should also deploy network-based intrusion detection systems to monitor for suspicious PDF file transfers and implement email filtering policies that scan attachments for potentially malicious content. Additionally, organizations should consider implementing sandboxing mechanisms for PDF processing and limiting user privileges when handling document files. The vulnerability's classification under ATT&CK technique T1059.007, "Command and Scripting Interpreter: JavaScript', suggests that attackers may leverage JavaScript within PDF documents to exploit this vulnerability, emphasizing the need for comprehensive JavaScript execution controls. Regular security assessments should verify that all endpoints have been properly patched and that no legacy installations remain in the environment.