CVE-2018-15940 in Acrobat Reader
Summary
by MITRE
Adobe Acrobat and Reader versions 2018.011.20063 and earlier, 2017.011.30102 and earlier, and 2015.006.30452 and earlier have an out-of-bounds write vulnerability. Successful exploitation could lead to arbitrary code execution.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/31/2020
Adobe Acrobat and Reader applications contain a critical out-of-bounds write vulnerability that affects multiple version ranges including 2018.011.20063 and earlier, 2017.011.30102 and earlier, and 2015.006.30452 and earlier. This vulnerability resides in the handling of malformed PDF files and represents a classic memory corruption flaw that falls under the CWE-787 Out-of-bounds Write weakness category. The technical flaw occurs when the software processes specially crafted PDF documents that contain malformed data structures, leading to memory corruption that can be exploited by attackers to execute arbitrary code on affected systems.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe as it allows remote code execution without user interaction, making it particularly dangerous in enterprise environments where users frequently open PDF documents from untrusted sources. Attackers can craft malicious PDF files that trigger the out-of-bounds write condition when the vulnerable software attempts to parse and render the document. This vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1203 Exploitation for Client Execution, as it enables adversaries to execute malicious code through the exploitation of client-side applications. The vulnerability affects both desktop and mobile versions of Adobe Acrobat and Reader, expanding the potential attack surface significantly.
Successful exploitation of CVE-2018-15940 can result in complete system compromise, allowing attackers to install malware, steal sensitive data, or establish persistence within the target environment. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it requires no user interaction to trigger, meaning that simply opening a malicious PDF file could lead to system compromise. Organizations should immediately apply the security patches released by Adobe to mitigate this risk. The recommended mitigation strategy includes not only applying the vendor patches but also implementing network-based protections such as PDF file scanning and restricting PDF file downloads from untrusted sources. Additionally, organizations should consider implementing application whitelisting policies to prevent execution of unauthorized code and deploy endpoint protection solutions that can detect and block exploitation attempts. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of keeping software up-to-date and implementing defense-in-depth strategies to protect against sophisticated attacks targeting widely used applications.