CVE-2015-5098 in Acrobat Reader
Summary
by MITRE
Heap-based buffer overflow in 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 allows attackers to execute arbitrary code via unspecified vectors, a different vulnerability than CVE-2015-5096 and CVE-2015-5105.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/21/2024
This heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability exists in multiple versions of Adobe Reader and Acrobat software across Windows and macOS platforms. The flaw manifests in the heap memory management during processing of specific file formats, creating conditions where attacker-controlled data can overwrite adjacent memory locations. The vulnerability affects Adobe Reader versions 10.x prior to 10.1.15 and 11.x prior to 11.0.12, along with Acrobat and Acrobat Reader DC Classic versions before 2015.006.30060 and DC Continuous versions before 2015.008.20082. Unlike related vulnerabilities CVE-2015-5096 and CVE-2015-5105, this particular flaw utilizes distinct attack vectors that exploit memory corruption patterns in the application's processing engine.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability involves improper bounds checking during heap allocation operations, allowing malicious input to exceed allocated buffer boundaries. When the vulnerable software processes specially crafted documents, the heap memory layout becomes corrupted, potentially enabling attackers to overwrite critical program structures, function pointers, or return addresses. This memory corruption can be leveraged to redirect execution flow and ultimately achieve arbitrary code execution within the context of the affected application. The heap-based nature of the vulnerability means that the attack surface extends beyond simple stack buffer overflows, exploiting the more complex memory management patterns of heap allocations.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe, as successful exploitation can result in complete system compromise. Attackers can execute malicious code with the privileges of the targeted user, potentially leading to data exfiltration, system persistence, or further lateral movement within networks. The vulnerability affects widely deployed software across enterprise environments, making it particularly attractive to threat actors seeking broad impact. The fact that it affects both Adobe Reader and Acrobat products across multiple operating systems increases the attack surface significantly, as organizations must patch multiple software components to achieve complete protection. This vulnerability aligns with attack patterns documented in the attack tree methodology, where memory corruption vulnerabilities represent high-value targets for exploit development due to their potential for privilege escalation and system control.
Organizations should immediately deploy patches from Adobe addressing the specific versions mentioned in the vulnerability description. The mitigation strategy should include comprehensive software inventory assessment to identify all affected installations across the enterprise environment. Security teams should implement network monitoring to detect potential exploitation attempts and establish incident response procedures for handling successful attacks. Additionally, organizations should consider implementing application whitelisting policies to restrict execution of untrusted PDF documents, particularly in high-risk environments. This vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of maintaining up-to-date software security patches and highlights the need for robust vulnerability management processes that can quickly identify and remediate such critical flaws across complex software ecosystems. The vulnerability also underscores the necessity of defense-in-depth strategies that combine multiple security controls to protect against sophisticated attacks targeting widely used applications.