CVE-2016-7003 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-2016-7000, CVE-2016-7001, CVE-2016-7002, 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.
If you want to get best quality of vulnerability data, you may have to visit VulDB.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/19/2024
Adobe Reader and Acrobat products have long been targets for sophisticated cyber attacks due to their widespread use and the complex nature of their document processing capabilities. This particular vulnerability CVE-2016-7003 represents a critical memory corruption flaw that affects multiple versions of Adobe's flagship software across different operating systems. The vulnerability manifests through unspecified attack vectors that differ from a comprehensive list of related vulnerabilities, indicating this represents a distinct threat model within Adobe's product ecosystem. The affected versions include legacy releases such as Adobe Reader and Acrobat before 11.0.18, as well as newer DC Classic and DC Continuous versions before specific patch levels, demonstrating that memory corruption issues can persist across multiple software generations.
The technical nature of this vulnerability involves memory corruption that can be exploited by attackers to execute arbitrary code on vulnerable systems. Memory corruption vulnerabilities typically arise from improper handling of memory allocation, deallocation, or buffer management within software applications. When an attacker successfully exploits such a flaw, they can manipulate the program's memory structure to redirect execution flow or inject malicious code. This particular vulnerability affects both Windows and OS X platforms, suggesting the memory corruption issue is present in the core processing libraries that handle document parsing regardless of the underlying operating system architecture. The unspecified nature of the attack vectors indicates that multiple code paths within the Adobe software could potentially be exploited, making the vulnerability particularly dangerous as it may be reachable through various document formats or processing scenarios.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability poses significant risks to organizations that rely heavily on Adobe Reader and Acrobat for document handling and sharing. The ability to execute arbitrary code remotely means that attackers could potentially compromise entire networks through targeted attacks against vulnerable endpoints. The denial of service component adds to the threat landscape, as attackers could disrupt business operations by causing applications to crash or become unresponsive. Organizations with extensive use of PDF documents, particularly in financial services, government agencies, or healthcare sectors, would be especially vulnerable to exploitation. The vulnerability's presence in both legacy and newer versions indicates that organizations may have been exposed to risk for extended periods without awareness, particularly if they had not updated to the latest security patches.
Security practitioners should implement comprehensive mitigation strategies that include immediate patch management for all affected versions of Adobe Reader and Acrobat software. The vulnerability's classification as a memory corruption issue aligns with common weakness enumeration CWE-125, which describes out-of-bounds read conditions that can lead to arbitrary code execution. Organizations should also consider implementing additional security controls such as sandboxing mechanisms, restricted user permissions for PDF processing, and network segmentation to limit the potential impact of successful exploitation. The ATT&CK framework would categorize this vulnerability under techniques related to privilege escalation and code injection, as attackers would need to leverage the memory corruption to gain elevated privileges or execute malicious payloads within the target environment. Regular security assessments and vulnerability scanning should be conducted to identify any remaining instances of vulnerable software within the organization's infrastructure.