CVE-2018-10478 in Foxit
Summary
by MITRE
This vulnerability allows remote attackers to disclose sensitive information on vulnerable installations of Foxit Reader 9.0.0.29935. User interaction is required to exploit this vulnerability in that the target must visit a malicious page or open a malicious file. The specific flaw exists within the parsing of U3D Texture Coord Dimensions objects. The issue results from the lack of proper validation of user-supplied data, which can result in a read past the end of an allocated object. An attacker can leverage this in conjunction with other vulnerabilities to execute code in the context of the current process. Was ZDI-CAN-5397.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/06/2020
This vulnerability in Foxit Reader 9.0.0.29935 represents a critical information disclosure flaw that enables remote attackers to access sensitive system data through crafted U3D Texture Coord Dimensions objects during the parsing process. The vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation mechanisms that fail to properly sanitize user-supplied data, creating an exploitable condition where the application reads beyond the boundaries of allocated memory objects. This type of flaw falls under the CWE-125 vulnerability category, which specifically addresses out-of-bounds read conditions that occur when programs access memory locations beyond the intended buffer boundaries. The vulnerability requires user interaction to be exploited, meaning that victims must either visit a malicious webpage or open a specially crafted malicious file containing the vulnerable U3D object structure.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability occurs during the parsing of Universal 3D (U3D) files, which are used for 3D graphics content in PDF documents. When Foxit Reader processes these U3D objects, particularly those related to texture coordinate dimensions, the application fails to validate the size and structure of the incoming data before attempting to read from memory locations. This inadequate validation allows an attacker to craft malicious U3D objects that contain malformed dimension specifications, causing the reader to traverse memory beyond the allocated buffer space. The resulting out-of-bounds read can expose sensitive information from adjacent memory locations including stack contents, heap data, or other process memory segments that may contain credentials, encryption keys, or other confidential information. This vulnerability directly aligns with ATT&CK technique T1059.007 for execution through PDF-based attacks and T1068 for local privilege escalation potential.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple information disclosure, as it creates a potential pathway for more sophisticated attacks when combined with other exploitation techniques. An attacker who successfully leverages this vulnerability can potentially extract enough sensitive data to aid in further exploitation attempts, including the possibility of executing arbitrary code within the context of the Foxit Reader process. This represents a significant security risk for organizations that rely on Foxit Reader for document processing, as the vulnerability can be triggered through web-based attacks or malicious file attachments without requiring elevated privileges. The vulnerability's classification as a remote code execution vector through combination with other exploits makes it particularly dangerous in enterprise environments where users frequently interact with external content and PDF documents. The ZDI-CAN-5397 reference indicates this vulnerability was recognized by the Zero Day Initiative and assigned a canonical identifier, confirming its significance in the cybersecurity community and the need for immediate remediation. Organizations should prioritize patching this vulnerability through official Foxit Reader updates to prevent potential exploitation and maintain the security posture of their document processing environments.