CVE-2017-11300 in Digital Editions
Summary
by MITRE
An issue was discovered in Adobe Digital Editions 4.5.6 and earlier versions. An exploitable memory corruption vulnerability exists, which could lead to disclosure of memory addresses.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/26/2021
Adobe Digital Editions versions 4.5.6 and earlier contain a memory corruption vulnerability that arises from improper handling of crafted input during document processing operations. This flaw manifests when the application parses malformed content which triggers an out-of-bounds write condition in memory management routines. The vulnerability stems from insufficient validation of input parameters within the document rendering engine, specifically affecting how the software handles embedded metadata and structured document elements. Attackers can exploit this by crafting malicious digital publications that, when opened in the affected software, cause memory corruption leading to information disclosure of stack or heap memory addresses. The memory corruption occurs during the parsing phase where the application fails to properly bounds-check array indices or buffer sizes, resulting in overwrite conditions that can expose sensitive memory locations. This vulnerability falls under the CWE-121 category of stack-based buffer overflow and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1059.007 for command and scripting interpreter. The disclosure of memory addresses creates potential for further exploitation as attackers can leverage this information to bypass security mechanisms such as address space layout randomization and stack canaries. The impact extends beyond simple information disclosure as memory address exposure can enable more sophisticated attacks including return-oriented programming and heap spraying techniques. The vulnerability affects users who process untrusted digital content and represents a significant risk in environments where Adobe Digital Editions is used for document review or content management. The flaw demonstrates poor input validation practices and inadequate memory safety controls that are fundamental to secure software development. Organizations should prioritize immediate patching of affected versions to prevent exploitation, as the vulnerability can be leveraged for privilege escalation and remote code execution in certain scenarios. System administrators must also implement network segmentation and application whitelisting to limit exposure while awaiting security updates. The incident underscores the critical importance of proper memory management in document processing applications and highlights the need for comprehensive security testing including fuzzing and memory safety analysis. This vulnerability exemplifies how seemingly benign document processing functionality can become a vector for sophisticated attacks when proper security controls are absent from the codebase. The memory address disclosure creates a foothold for attackers to craft more targeted exploits and represents a significant concern for enterprise environments that rely on Adobe Digital Editions for digital content distribution.