CVE-2017-3088 in Digital Editions
Summary
by MITRE
Adobe Digital Editions versions 4.5.4 and earlier have an exploitable memory corruption vulnerability in the PDF runtime engine. Successful exploitation could lead to arbitrary code execution.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/28/2020
Adobe Digital Editions version 4.5.4 and earlier contains a critical memory corruption vulnerability within its PDF runtime engine that presents a significant security risk to users. This vulnerability falls under the category of memory safety issues and can be classified as a buffer overflow or heap corruption flaw that occurs when processing specially crafted PDF documents. The flaw exists in how the application handles memory allocation and deallocation during PDF parsing operations, creating opportunities for attackers to manipulate memory structures and execute malicious code.
The technical nature of this vulnerability allows an attacker to craft a malicious PDF file that, when opened by an affected version of Adobe Digital Editions, triggers the memory corruption condition. This typically involves manipulating PDF objects or structures that the runtime engine processes, leading to unpredictable memory behavior. The vulnerability can be exploited through various attack vectors including email attachments, web downloads, or malicious websites that serve compromised PDF content to unsuspecting users. When the vulnerable application attempts to parse the malicious file, it may overwrite memory locations or execute code from controlled memory regions, providing attackers with remote code execution capabilities.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe and multifaceted. Users running affected versions of Adobe Digital Editions face significant risk of compromise when opening any PDF document, as the attack requires no user interaction beyond the simple act of opening the file. This makes the vulnerability particularly dangerous in enterprise environments where users may encounter legitimate PDF documents from untrusted sources. The remote code execution capability allows attackers to install malware, steal sensitive data, or establish persistent access to compromised systems. The vulnerability affects not just individual users but also organizations that rely on Adobe Digital Editions for document management and distribution, potentially leading to widespread security breaches and data loss incidents.
Organizations should prioritize immediate remediation by updating to Adobe Digital Editions version 4.5.5 or later, which contains the necessary patches to address this memory corruption vulnerability. System administrators should implement strict content filtering measures and disable automatic PDF opening in web browsers to reduce exposure. Additionally, users should be educated about the risks of opening PDF documents from unknown or untrusted sources, and organizations should consider implementing endpoint protection solutions that can detect and block exploitation attempts. The vulnerability aligns with attack patterns documented in the attack technique matrix under software exploitation categories and represents a typical example of memory safety flaws that require careful handling of user-provided data in document processing applications.
This vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of keeping digital content processing software up to date, as the memory corruption issue affects core functionality that handles user content. The flaw represents a classic example of how PDF processing engines can become attack surfaces when they fail to properly validate input data. Organizations should also consider implementing network segmentation and access controls to limit the potential impact of successful exploitation attempts. Regular security assessments and vulnerability scanning should be conducted to identify and remediate similar issues in other document processing applications that may be present in the enterprise environment. The incident highlights the necessity of robust input validation and memory safety practices in software development, particularly for applications that process untrusted content from external sources.