CVE-2015-5090 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 bypass intended access restrictions and perform a transition from Low Integrity to Medium Integrity via unspecified vectors, a different vulnerability than CVE-2015-4446 and CVE-2015-5106.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/21/2024
Adobe Reader and Acrobat versions prior to specific patch levels contain a critical integrity escalation vulnerability that allows attackers to bypass intended access restrictions and transition from Low Integrity to Medium Integrity levels on Windows and OS X systems. This vulnerability specifically affects Adobe Reader 10.x versions before 10.1.15 and 11.x versions before 11.0.12, as well as Acrobat and Acrobat Reader DC Classic before 2015.006.30060 and DC Continuous before 2015.008.20082. The flaw operates through unspecified vectors that differ from other known vulnerabilities such as CVE-2015-4446 and CVE-2015-5106, making it a distinct threat vector within the Adobe security landscape.
The technical nature of this vulnerability lies in the improper handling of integrity level transitions within Adobe's security model. When a user opens a malicious PDF document, the exploit leverages a weakness in the application's integrity management system to elevate privileges from Low Integrity to Medium Integrity. This transition represents a significant security regression as Low Integrity processes are designed to have minimal system access and are typically used for untrusted content. The vulnerability essentially undermines the security boundary that separates trusted and untrusted execution contexts, allowing malicious code to gain elevated privileges without proper authentication or authorization.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability poses severe risks to enterprise environments where Adobe Reader is commonly used for document processing. Attackers can exploit this flaw to execute arbitrary code with Medium Integrity privileges, which typically grants access to user-level system resources including file system access, registry modifications, and network communication capabilities. The impact extends beyond individual user systems as successful exploitation can serve as a stepping stone for further attacks, potentially leading to full system compromise. Organizations running affected Adobe versions face increased risk of data breaches, privilege escalation attacks, and potential lateral movement within their networks.
The vulnerability aligns with CWE-276, which addresses improper privilege management and inadequate access control mechanisms, and represents a clear violation of the principle of least privilege in security design. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to privilege escalation techniques and can be leveraged as part of broader attack chains that include initial access through malicious documents and subsequent exploitation for system compromise. Organizations should prioritize immediate patching of all affected Adobe Reader and Acrobat installations, implementing network segmentation to limit exposure, and monitoring for suspicious document handling activities. Additionally, deploying application whitelisting solutions and restricting Adobe Reader execution in high-risk environments can provide additional defensive layers against exploitation attempts.