CVE-2016-4095 in Acrobat Reader
Summary
by MITRE
Adobe Reader and Acrobat before 11.0.18, Acrobat and Acrobat Reader DC Classic before 15.006.30243, and Acrobat and Acrobat Reader DC Continuous before 15.020.20039 on Windows and OS X allow attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (memory corruption) via unspecified vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/19/2024
Adobe Reader and Acrobat products have long been prime targets for cyber attackers due to their widespread deployment and the rich functionality they provide for document processing. The vulnerability identified as CVE-2016-4095 represents a critical memory corruption flaw that affects multiple versions of Adobe's document processing software across both Windows and macOS operating systems. This vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and memory management practices within the affected software components, creating opportunities for malicious actors to exploit memory handling errors through carefully crafted malicious documents.
The technical nature of this vulnerability involves memory corruption that can be triggered by processing specially crafted PDF files or other document formats supported by Adobe Reader and Acrobat. Attackers can leverage this flaw to execute arbitrary code on vulnerable systems or cause denial of service conditions that may lead to system instability or complete crashes. The unspecified vectors indicate that the vulnerability can be exploited through multiple attack surfaces within the software's document parsing and rendering capabilities, making it particularly dangerous as it provides attackers with flexibility in how they approach exploitation. This type of vulnerability aligns with CWE-125, which describes out-of-bounds read conditions, and CWE-787, which covers out-of-bounds write conditions, both of which are common in memory corruption vulnerabilities.
The operational impact of CVE-2016-4095 extends beyond simple exploitation as it represents a significant threat to enterprise security infrastructure. Organizations that deploy Adobe Reader and Acrobat across their networks face substantial risk from this vulnerability, as it can be leveraged for privilege escalation attacks, lateral movement within networks, and establishment of persistent access points. The vulnerability's potential for remote code execution means that attackers can compromise systems simply by convincing users to open malicious documents, often delivered through phishing campaigns or compromised websites. This makes the attack surface particularly broad and difficult to control, as users frequently interact with PDF documents from untrusted sources.
Security professionals should prioritize immediate remediation of this vulnerability through patch management processes, as Adobe released updates to address the memory corruption issues in versions 11.0.18, 15.006.30243, and 15.020.20039 respectively. Organizations should implement network-based controls such as PDF content filtering and sandboxing solutions to reduce the risk of exploitation while patches are deployed. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this vulnerability under T1059 for command and script interpreter and T1203 for exploitation for client execution, highlighting the need for layered defensive measures including endpoint protection, network monitoring, and user education programs. Additionally, implementing principle of least privilege access controls and regular security assessments can help minimize the potential impact should exploitation occur despite preventive measures.