CVE-2018-12763 in Acrobat Reader
Summary
by MITRE
Adobe Acrobat and Reader 2018.011.20040 and earlier, 2017.011.30080 and earlier, and 2015.006.30418 and earlier versions have an Out-of-bounds read vulnerability. Successful exploitation could lead to information disclosure.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/12/2024
Adobe Acrobat and Reader applications contain a critical out-of-bounds read vulnerability that affects multiple version ranges including 2018.011.20040 and earlier, 2017.011.30080 and earlier, and 2015.006.30418 and earlier. This vulnerability resides in the handling of PDF documents and represents a classic buffer over-read condition where the application attempts to access memory locations beyond the allocated buffer boundaries. The flaw manifests when processing malformed PDF files that contain specially crafted data structures designed to trigger the out-of-bounds memory access. This type of vulnerability falls under CWE-125 which specifically addresses out-of-bounds read conditions in software implementations. The technical execution of this vulnerability requires an attacker to craft a malicious PDF document that, when opened by an affected version of Adobe Reader or Acrobat, causes the application to read memory beyond its intended bounds. This memory access pattern can potentially expose sensitive data from adjacent memory locations including but not limited to stack contents, heap data, or other process memory segments. The information disclosure impact occurs because the out-of-bounds read may inadvertently reveal confidential information such as cryptographic keys, user credentials, or internal application state data that resides in memory. From an operational perspective, exploitation of this vulnerability typically requires social engineering to convince users to open the malicious PDF file, making it a significant risk in targeted attacks or phishing campaigns. The vulnerability's impact extends beyond simple information disclosure as it can potentially enable further exploitation techniques such as information leakage that may aid in bypassing security mechanisms or facilitating more sophisticated attacks. According to ATT&CK framework, this vulnerability aligns with techniques involving initial access through malicious files and privilege escalation through information gathering. The attack surface is particularly concerning given that PDF files are commonly used in business environments and are frequently opened by users without security awareness. The vulnerability demonstrates a fundamental flaw in input validation and memory management within Adobe's PDF processing libraries, where proper bounds checking mechanisms are insufficient to prevent memory access violations. Organizations using affected versions of Adobe Acrobat and Reader should immediately implement patch management procedures to upgrade to versions that address this vulnerability. The recommended mitigation strategy includes not only applying the vendor patches but also implementing additional security controls such as PDF file scanning, restricted browsing environments, and user education regarding suspicious file attachments. Network-based defenses can be enhanced through content filtering solutions that inspect PDF file contents for known malicious patterns, though this approach may not prevent all variants of the exploit. The vulnerability also highlights the importance of maintaining up-to-date software patches and implementing zero-trust security models where all file processing is treated as potentially malicious regardless of source. Security teams should monitor for indicators of compromise related to PDF-based attacks and establish incident response procedures specifically addressing potential exploitation of this class of vulnerability.