CVE-2017-11270 in Acrobat Reader
Summary
by MITRE
Adobe Acrobat Reader 2017.009.20058 and earlier, 2017.008.30051 and earlier, 2015.006.30306 and earlier, and 11.0.20 and earlier has an exploitable memory corruption vulnerability in the image conversion engine when processing Enhanced Metafile Format (EMF) private data representing icons. Successful exploitation could lead to arbitrary code execution.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/31/2024
This vulnerability resides within Adobe Acrobat Reader's image conversion engine, specifically when processing Enhanced Metafile Format EMF private data that represents icons. The flaw manifests as a memory corruption issue that occurs during the handling of EMF files containing icon data, making it particularly dangerous for users who encounter such files in their daily operations. The vulnerability affects multiple versions of Adobe Acrobat Reader including the 2017, 2015, and 11.0.x series, indicating a long-standing issue that spans several major releases and suggests the problem may be deeply embedded within the software's processing architecture.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from improper memory handling within the EMF parsing functionality. When the application encounters EMF private data representing icons, the image conversion engine fails to properly validate or sanitize the input data before processing it in memory. This leads to memory corruption that can be exploited to execute arbitrary code on the target system. The vulnerability represents a classic buffer overflow scenario where insufficient bounds checking allows malicious data to overwrite adjacent memory locations, potentially enabling attackers to manipulate program execution flow through stack or heap corruption.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability presents a significant risk to organizations as it requires no user interaction beyond opening a malicious EMF file, making it particularly dangerous in phishing campaigns or targeted attacks. The exploitability is high as it can be triggered through simple file opening operations, and successful exploitation can result in complete system compromise. This vulnerability falls under the CWE-121 category of stack-based buffer overflow, which is classified as a critical security issue in the Common Weakness Enumeration catalog. The attack surface is broad as EMF files can be encountered in various contexts including email attachments, web downloads, and removable media.
The impact of this vulnerability extends beyond individual user systems to enterprise environments where Adobe Acrobat Reader is widely deployed. Attackers can leverage this weakness to gain unauthorized access to sensitive information, deploy additional malware, or establish persistent backdoors on compromised systems. Organizations using older versions of the software are particularly vulnerable as these releases likely lack the security mitigations present in newer versions. The vulnerability aligns with attack patterns documented in the MITRE ATT&CK framework under the technique of "Exploitation for Privilege Escalation" and "Command and Control" activities.
Organizations should immediately implement mitigations including updating to the latest versions of Adobe Acrobat Reader, which contain patches addressing this memory corruption issue. Network segmentation and email filtering should be enhanced to prevent the delivery of potentially malicious EMF files. System administrators should also consider implementing application whitelisting policies to restrict execution of untrusted files and monitor for suspicious file access patterns. The vulnerability serves as a reminder of the critical importance of keeping enterprise software updated and maintaining robust security hygiene practices across all system components.