CVE-2017-2964 in Acrobat Reader
Summary
by MITRE
Adobe Acrobat Reader versions 15.020.20042 and earlier, 15.006.30244 and earlier, 11.0.18 and earlier have an exploitable memory corruption vulnerability in the image conversion engine, related to the parsing of JPEG EXIF metadata. Successful exploitation could lead to arbitrary code execution.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/01/2024
Adobe Acrobat Reader contains a critical memory corruption vulnerability in its image conversion engine that affects multiple version ranges including 15.020.20042 and earlier, 15.006.30244 and earlier, and 11.0.18 and earlier. This vulnerability specifically manifests during the parsing of JPEG EXIF metadata within the image conversion process, creating an exploitable condition that allows attackers to execute arbitrary code on affected systems. The flaw resides in how the application handles malformed or specially crafted EXIF data embedded within JPEG images, leading to memory corruption that can be leveraged for privilege escalation and system compromise. This vulnerability represents a classic buffer overflow condition that falls under the CWE-121 category of stack-based buffer overflow, where insufficient bounds checking allows attackers to overwrite adjacent memory locations. The attack surface is particularly concerning as it requires no user interaction beyond opening a maliciously crafted PDF document containing embedded JPEG images with malicious EXIF metadata, making it suitable for phishing campaigns and targeted attacks. The vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1068 which describes the exploitation of local privilege escalation vulnerabilities, and T1203 which covers the use of exploitation for execution through malicious document formats. The memory corruption occurs when the image conversion engine attempts to parse EXIF data without proper validation, allowing an attacker to craft specially formatted JPEG images that trigger the vulnerability when processed by Acrobat Reader. This creates a persistent threat vector where adversaries can deliver malware through seemingly legitimate PDF documents that appear safe to users. The impact extends beyond simple code execution to potential full system compromise, as successful exploitation can enable attackers to establish persistent access and perform additional malicious activities. Organizations running affected versions of Adobe Acrobat Reader should immediately implement patch management procedures to upgrade to versions that have addressed this vulnerability, as the window for exploitation remains open for unpatched systems. The vulnerability demonstrates the ongoing challenges in image processing libraries and metadata parsing, where legacy code handling of standardized formats can introduce security risks that persist across multiple software versions and platforms. This particular flaw underscores the importance of comprehensive input validation and memory safety practices in document processing applications, particularly those handling multimedia content within PDF documents. The attack vector represents a significant concern for enterprise environments where PDF documents are frequently shared and opened, making this vulnerability particularly dangerous for organizations that have not yet deployed security patches or have limited patch management capabilities.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability requires attackers to craft PDF documents containing JPEG images with malformed EXIF metadata that triggers the memory corruption during image rendering. This process typically involves manipulating the EXIF structure to cause buffer overflows in the image conversion engine, allowing attackers to control execution flow and potentially execute shellcode. The vulnerability's classification as a heap-based buffer overflow under CWE-122 indicates that memory allocated on the heap is being overwritten beyond its allocated boundaries, which can result in unpredictable behavior and system instability. Security researchers have noted that the vulnerability's exploitation is relatively straightforward for experienced attackers who understand the specific memory layout and can craft appropriate payloads that leverage the existing memory corruption to achieve code execution. The lack of proper bounds checking in the JPEG EXIF parsing routine means that any attempt to read or write data beyond the allocated buffer space can result in memory corruption that an attacker can manipulate for malicious purposes. Organizations should consider implementing additional security controls such as PDF sandboxing, content filtering, and restricted user permissions to limit the potential impact of exploitation, particularly in environments where users may inadvertently open malicious documents. The vulnerability's presence in multiple version ranges indicates that Adobe's security team identified this as a persistent issue requiring immediate attention across their product line. This particular weakness in the image processing pipeline demonstrates how metadata handling can introduce security risks that are often overlooked during initial security assessments, especially when dealing with standard image formats that are widely used in document processing applications. The exploitation of this vulnerability aligns with the broader category of file format vulnerabilities described in the Common Weakness Enumeration database, specifically under the broader classification of memory corruption vulnerabilities that affect multimedia processing components within office applications.