CVE-2015-6692 in Acrobat Reader
Summary
by MITRE
Buffer overflow in Adobe Reader and Acrobat 10.x before 10.1.16 and 11.x before 11.0.13, Acrobat and Acrobat Reader DC Classic before 2015.006.30094, and Acrobat and Acrobat Reader DC Continuous before 2015.009.20069 on Windows and OS X allows attackers to obtain sensitive information via unspecified vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/21/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2015-6692 represents a critical buffer overflow flaw affecting Adobe Reader and Acrobat software across multiple versions and operating systems. This security issue impacts Adobe Reader versions 10.x prior to 10.1.16 and 11.x prior to 11.0.13, along with Acrobat and Acrobat Reader DC Classic versions before 2015.006.30094 and DC Continuous versions before 2015.009.20069 on both Windows and macOS platforms. The vulnerability stems from improper input validation mechanisms within the software's handling of certain data structures, creating opportunities for malicious actors to exploit memory management weaknesses.
The technical nature of this buffer overflow vulnerability falls under CWE-121, which describes heap-based buffer overflow conditions where insufficient boundary checking allows attackers to write beyond allocated memory boundaries. This particular flaw enables attackers to manipulate memory regions and potentially execute arbitrary code or obtain sensitive information from the affected systems. The unspecified vectors mentioned in the description suggest that multiple attack pathways could be exploited, including malformed PDF files or crafted data structures that trigger the vulnerable code paths during document processing operations.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability poses significant risks to organizations relying on Adobe Reader and Acrobat for document handling and processing. The buffer overflow could potentially allow attackers to escalate privileges, access sensitive data, or even gain full system control depending on the execution environment and available mitigations. The widespread deployment of Adobe Reader across enterprise environments makes this vulnerability particularly dangerous as it affects a large user base with varying security postures. Organizations using these vulnerable versions face increased risk of data breaches, unauthorized access, and potential system compromise through targeted attacks leveraging this memory corruption vulnerability.
Security professionals should implement immediate mitigations including mandatory software updates to the patched versions specified in the CVE details, along with network segmentation and monitoring of PDF file handling activities. The vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1059.007 for command and scripting interpreter, as attackers could potentially leverage the buffer overflow to execute malicious code within the application context. Additional defensive measures include implementing application whitelisting policies, disabling unnecessary PDF features, and conducting regular security assessments of document processing environments to identify and remediate similar vulnerabilities in other software components. Organizations should also consider deploying endpoint detection and response solutions to monitor for suspicious behavior patterns associated with memory corruption exploits.