CVE-2016-7000 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, a different vulnerability than CVE-2016-6940, CVE-2016-6941, CVE-2016-6942, CVE-2016-6943, CVE-2016-6947, CVE-2016-6948, CVE-2016-6950, CVE-2016-6951, CVE-2016-6954, CVE-2016-6955, CVE-2016-6956, CVE-2016-6959, CVE-2016-6960, CVE-2016-6966, CVE-2016-6970, CVE-2016-6972, CVE-2016-6973, CVE-2016-6974, CVE-2016-6975, CVE-2016-6976, CVE-2016-6977, CVE-2016-6978, CVE-2016-6995, CVE-2016-6996, CVE-2016-6997, CVE-2016-6998, CVE-2016-7001, CVE-2016-7002, CVE-2016-7003, CVE-2016-7004, CVE-2016-7005, CVE-2016-7006, CVE-2016-7007, CVE-2016-7008, CVE-2016-7009, CVE-2016-7010, CVE-2016-7011, CVE-2016-7012, CVE-2016-7013, CVE-2016-7014, CVE-2016-7015, CVE-2016-7016, CVE-2016-7017, CVE-2016-7018, and CVE-2016-7019.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/19/2024
This vulnerability affects Adobe Reader and Acrobat products across multiple versions, representing a critical memory corruption flaw that enables remote code execution or denial of service conditions. The vulnerability exists within the handling of unspecified input vectors within the software's processing mechanisms, making it particularly dangerous as attackers can exploit it through various attack surfaces without specific knowledge of the exact trigger conditions. The affected versions span across both legacy and newer release lines including Acrobat and Reader DC Classic and Continuous versions, indicating this represents a widespread issue that has persisted across multiple product iterations.
The technical nature of this vulnerability falls under memory corruption patterns that are commonly associated with buffer overflows, use-after-free conditions, or other heap-based memory management errors. Such flaws typically occur when applications fail to properly validate input data or when they manipulate memory pointers without adequate bounds checking. The vulnerability's classification aligns with common CWE entries such as CWE-121 for stack-based buffer overflow and CWE-122 for heap-based buffer overflow, though the specific implementation details remain unspecified in the CVE description. This particular memory corruption issue allows attackers to manipulate program execution flow through carefully crafted malicious documents that trigger the vulnerable code paths during document parsing operations.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability presents significant risk to organizations that rely on Adobe Reader and Acrobat for document processing and viewing. The ability to execute arbitrary code remotely means that attackers can potentially gain complete system control, escalate privileges, or establish persistent backdoors through exploitation of this flaw. The denial of service component further compounds the risk as it can be used to disrupt business operations by making document processing applications unavailable to legitimate users. The vulnerability's presence across multiple platforms including both Windows and OS X systems increases its attack surface and makes it particularly attractive to threat actors seeking maximum impact with minimal effort.
Organizations should prioritize immediate remediation through patching to address this vulnerability, as the lack of specific exploit details in the CVE description does not diminish the severity of the risk. The vulnerability's inclusion in a list of related CVEs suggests it may be part of a broader exploitation campaign targeting Adobe products, making timely patching essential for maintaining security posture. Security teams should implement network monitoring to detect potential exploitation attempts and consider deploying application whitelisting policies to restrict execution of untrusted PDF files. The vulnerability's nature also aligns with tactics described in the MITRE ATT&CK framework under techniques such as T1203 for Exploitation for Client Execution and T1059 for Command and Scripting Interpreter, indicating that exploitation could involve multiple attack vectors and stages of compromise.
Mitigation strategies should include comprehensive patch management programs that ensure all affected Adobe products are updated to versions that contain the necessary security fixes. Organizations should also implement layered security controls including email filtering to prevent malicious PDF attachments from reaching end users, network segmentation to limit potential lateral movement, and regular security assessments to identify other potential vulnerabilities in the document processing pipeline. The vulnerability's impact extends beyond simple exploitation to include potential data exfiltration and system compromise, making it essential for organizations to maintain robust incident response procedures and security monitoring capabilities. Regular updates to security software and maintaining awareness of related vulnerabilities in the broader Adobe ecosystem will help organizations maintain protection against similar threats that may emerge from the same exploitation patterns.