CVE-2015-5131 in Flash Player
Summary
by MITRE
Buffer overflow in Adobe Flash Player before 18.0.0.232 on Windows and OS X and before 11.2.202.508 on Linux, Adobe AIR before 18.0.0.199, Adobe AIR SDK before 18.0.0.199, and Adobe AIR SDK & Compiler before 18.0.0.199 allows attackers to execute arbitrary code via unspecified vectors, a different vulnerability than CVE-2015-5132 and CVE-2015-5133.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/10/2025
This vulnerability represents a critical buffer overflow flaw in Adobe Flash Player and Adobe AIR platforms that affects multiple operating systems and versions. The issue exists in Flash Player versions prior to 18.0.0.232 on Windows and OS X, and before 11.2.202.508 on Linux, alongside affected Adobe AIR versions and SDKs. The vulnerability stems from improper input validation and memory management within the multimedia framework, creating a condition where attacker-controlled data can overwrite adjacent memory locations beyond the bounds of allocated buffers. This flaw falls under CWE-121, which specifically addresses stack-based buffer overflow conditions, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1059.007 for execution through Flash Player exploitation.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability allows adversaries to craft malicious Flash content that triggers the buffer overflow during normal execution flows. When the vulnerable player processes specially crafted SWF files, the overflow can overwrite critical memory segments including return addresses, function pointers, or other control data structures. This memory corruption enables attackers to redirect execution flow and ultimately achieve arbitrary code execution with the privileges of the Flash Player process. The vulnerability's impact extends beyond simple code execution as it can be leveraged for privilege escalation, information disclosure, or system compromise depending on the target environment and execution context.
The operational implications of CVE-2015-5131 are severe given Flash Player's widespread deployment across enterprise environments and user systems. Attackers can exploit this vulnerability through various delivery mechanisms including malicious websites, email attachments, or compromised web applications that serve malicious Flash content. The vulnerability's presence in both desktop and mobile Flash implementations means organizations must consider comprehensive remediation across all affected platforms. Security teams face challenges in detecting exploitation attempts as the memory corruption may not immediately manifest in obvious system behavior, making detection more complex and requiring specialized monitoring of Flash Player processes and network traffic patterns.
Organizations should prioritize immediate patching of all affected systems to address this vulnerability, with particular attention to legacy systems that may not receive automatic updates. The remediation process requires updating to the patched versions of Adobe Flash Player 18.0.0.232 or later, Adobe AIR 18.0.0.199 or later, and corresponding SDK versions. Additional mitigations include implementing network-based controls such as web application firewalls to block malicious Flash content, disabling Flash Player in browsers where possible, and deploying endpoint protection solutions with behavioral monitoring capabilities. Security teams should also consider implementing application whitelisting policies to restrict Flash Player execution to trusted environments only, as outlined in the MITRE ATT&CK framework's recommendations for preventing exploitation of known vulnerabilities.