CVE-2015-3126 in Flash Player
Summary
by MITRE
Adobe Flash Player before 13.0.0.302 and 14.x through 18.x before 18.0.0.203 on Windows and OS X and before 11.2.202.481 on Linux, Adobe AIR before 18.0.0.180, Adobe AIR SDK before 18.0.0.180, and Adobe AIR SDK & Compiler before 18.0.0.180 allow attackers to cause a denial of service (NULL pointer dereference) or possibly have unspecified other impact via unknown vectors, a different vulnerability than CVE-2015-4429.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/23/2022
Adobe Flash Player versions prior to 13.0.0.302 and 14.x through 18.x before 18.0.0.203 on Windows and OS X platforms, along with affected versions on Linux systems before 11.2.202.481, and Adobe AIR versions before 18.0.0.180 including corresponding SDK and Compiler versions, contained a critical vulnerability that enabled attackers to trigger a NULL pointer dereference condition. This vulnerability represents a classic software flaw where the application attempts to access memory through a null pointer reference, leading to system instability and potential denial of service conditions. The vulnerability operates through unknown vectors that differ from CVE-2015-4429, indicating a separate attack surface that specifically targets memory management functions within the Flash runtime environment. The technical implementation involves the Flash Player's handling of malformed or specially crafted input data that causes the application to attempt operations on uninitialized or invalid memory addresses, resulting in application crashes or system instability. This particular vulnerability falls under the CWE-476 category of NULL Pointer Dereference, which is a fundamental programming error that occurs when an application attempts to access memory through a null pointer reference. The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple denial of service, as it could potentially enable more sophisticated attacks depending on the execution environment and system configuration. Attackers could exploit this weakness to cause applications to crash, leading to service disruption, or in some scenarios, potentially leverage the instability to execute arbitrary code or escalate privileges. The vulnerability affects multiple platforms including Windows, OS X, and Linux, demonstrating the cross-platform nature of Flash Player security issues and highlighting the complexity of maintaining secure runtime environments across different operating systems. From an adversarial perspective, this vulnerability aligns with techniques described in the MITRE ATT&CK framework under the T1499 category of Network Denial of Service, where attackers can disrupt services by causing application crashes and system instability. The security implications are particularly concerning given Flash Player's widespread deployment and the complex nature of its runtime environment that processes multimedia content and interactive web applications. Organizations running affected versions of Adobe Flash Player and AIR applications face significant risk as this vulnerability could be exploited in the wild to compromise system availability and potentially gain unauthorized access to user systems. The fix for this vulnerability required Adobe to implement proper null pointer checks and memory validation procedures within the Flash Player runtime, ensuring that all memory operations are properly validated before execution. System administrators and security professionals should prioritize patching affected installations to prevent exploitation, as the vulnerability's potential for unspecified other impacts suggests it may enable additional attack vectors beyond the immediate denial of service condition. The remediation process involves updating to the patched versions of Adobe Flash Player, AIR, and related SDK components, with careful attention to ensuring complete deployment across all affected systems to maintain consistent security posture. This vulnerability underscores the ongoing challenges in maintaining secure multimedia runtime environments and the critical importance of regular security updates for widely deployed software components.