CVE-2018-12830 in Acrobat Reader
Summary
by MITRE
Adobe Acrobat and Reader versions 2019.008.20081 and earlier, 2019.008.20080 and earlier, 2019.008.20081 and earlier, 2017.011.30106 and earlier version, 2017.011.30105 and earlier version, 2015.006.30457 and earlier, and 2015.006.30456 and earlier have a heap overflow vulnerability. Successful exploitation could lead to arbitrary code execution.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/03/2024
Adobe Acrobat and Reader applications contain a critical heap overflow vulnerability that affects multiple versions across different release cycles. This vulnerability resides in the handling of malformed PDF files and represents a classic memory corruption flaw that can be exploited by attackers to execute arbitrary code on affected systems. The heap overflow occurs when the software processes specially crafted input data that exceeds allocated memory boundaries, potentially allowing attackers to overwrite adjacent memory locations and manipulate program execution flow.
The technical nature of this vulnerability aligns with CWE-121, which describes heap-based buffer overflow conditions where insufficient bounds checking allows attackers to write beyond allocated memory regions. This particular flaw manifests when the vulnerable software parses PDF objects that contain oversized or malformed data structures, leading to unpredictable memory corruption patterns. The vulnerability affects Adobe Acrobat and Reader versions including 2019.008.20081, 2019.008.20080, 2017.011.30106, 2017.011.30105, 2015.006.30457, and 2015.006.30456, indicating a widespread issue across multiple product generations. The exploitation of this vulnerability typically requires social engineering to deliver malicious PDF files to targeted users, as the attack vector involves user interaction with compromised documents.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability presents significant risk to organizations relying on Adobe Acrobat and Reader for document processing and viewing. Successful exploitation enables attackers to achieve arbitrary code execution with the privileges of the affected user, potentially leading to complete system compromise. The vulnerability's impact extends beyond individual user machines to enterprise environments where PDF documents are frequently shared and processed. Attackers leveraging this vulnerability could perform privilege escalation, establish persistent backdoors, or conduct data exfiltration activities. The attack surface is particularly large given that PDF files are commonly used in business communications, making this vulnerability attractive to threat actors targeting corporate networks.
The mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should include immediate patch deployment from Adobe, which addresses the heap overflow through proper bounds checking and memory allocation validation. Organizations should implement comprehensive security measures including email filtering to prevent delivery of malicious PDF attachments, network-based intrusion detection systems to monitor for exploitation attempts, and user education to reduce social engineering success rates. Additionally, security teams should consider implementing application whitelisting policies to restrict execution of Adobe Reader in restricted environments. According to ATT&CK framework, this vulnerability maps to T1059.007 for command and scripting interpreter and T1068 for exploit for privilege escalation, making it a critical target for defensive security operations. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of proper memory management practices and highlights the need for regular security updates in widely deployed software applications. Organizations should prioritize this vulnerability for remediation due to its potential for remote code execution and the ease with which it can be exploited through standard phishing campaigns.