CVE-2016-0995 in Flash Player
Summary
by MITRE
Use-after-free vulnerability in Adobe Flash Player before 18.0.0.333 and 19.x through 21.x before 21.0.0.182 on Windows and OS X and before 11.2.202.577 on Linux, Adobe AIR before 21.0.0.176, Adobe AIR SDK before 21.0.0.176, and Adobe AIR SDK & Compiler before 21.0.0.176 allows attackers to execute arbitrary code via unspecified vectors, a different vulnerability than CVE-2016-0987, CVE-2016-0988, CVE-2016-0990, CVE-2016-0991, CVE-2016-0994, CVE-2016-0996, CVE-2016-0997, CVE-2016-0998, CVE-2016-0999, and CVE-2016-1000.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/10/2022
The CVE-2016-0995 vulnerability represents a critical use-after-free flaw in Adobe Flash Player and related software components that affected multiple versions across different operating systems. This vulnerability specifically targets the memory management mechanisms within Adobe's runtime environment, creating opportunities for remote code execution attacks. The affected versions include Flash Player releases before 18.0.0.333 and 19.x through 21.x before 21.0.0.182 on Windows and OS X platforms, along with Linux versions before 11.2.202.577. Additionally, Adobe AIR and AIR SDK components were impacted through versions before 21.0.0.176, making this vulnerability particularly widespread across the Adobe ecosystem.
The technical nature of this use-after-free vulnerability stems from improper memory management practices where the Flash Player continues to reference memory locations after they have been freed or deallocated. This memory corruption pattern creates exploitable conditions where attackers can manipulate the freed memory to inject and execute malicious code. The vulnerability operates through unspecified attack vectors that differ from other contemporaneous Flash Player flaws, indicating a unique exploitation methodology that bypasses typical security mitigations. The flaw resides in the core runtime execution engine that processes Flash content, making it particularly dangerous as it can be triggered through standard web browsing activities when Flash content is rendered.
The operational impact of CVE-2016-0995 extends beyond simple privilege escalation to encompass full system compromise capabilities. Attackers leveraging this vulnerability can execute arbitrary code with the privileges of the Flash Player process, which typically runs with user-level permissions but can potentially be elevated through additional attack chains. The widespread deployment of Flash Player across enterprise environments and personal computers made this vulnerability particularly attractive to threat actors, as it provided a reliable path to compromise targets. Security researchers have classified this vulnerability under CWE-416 which specifically addresses use-after-free conditions, aligning with the fundamental memory corruption principles that enable such exploits.
From a threat landscape perspective, this vulnerability demonstrates the persistent security challenges associated with rich media runtime environments and their complex memory management systems. The ATT&CK framework categorizes such vulnerabilities under the 'Exploitation' phase, where adversaries leverage software flaws to gain unauthorized access and execute malicious payloads. Organizations deploying Adobe Flash Player were particularly vulnerable since the software was commonly enabled by default in web browsers, creating numerous potential attack surfaces. The vulnerability's impact was amplified by the fact that many users never updated their Flash Player installations, leaving systems exposed to exploitation for extended periods. Mitigation strategies required immediate patch deployment, browser configuration changes to disable Flash content, and comprehensive network monitoring to detect exploitation attempts, with the most effective approach being complete removal of Flash Player from affected systems.