CVE-2018-5018 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 • 08/11/2024
Adobe Acrobat and Reader versions prior to 2018.011.20040, 2017.011.30080, and 2015.006.30418 contain a critical out-of-bounds read vulnerability that stems from improper input validation within the document parsing functionality. This vulnerability falls under the CWE-129 weakness category, specifically representing an insufficient bound check that allows malicious actors to access memory locations beyond the intended buffer boundaries. The flaw occurs when the software processes malformed PDF files, particularly during the parsing of certain embedded objects or streams where the application fails to properly validate array indices or buffer limits before accessing memory locations.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability involves crafting a malicious PDF document that triggers an out-of-bounds memory read condition when the affected Adobe applications attempt to parse specific elements within the document structure. When the application encounters such malformed input, it continues to read memory beyond the allocated buffer boundaries, potentially exposing sensitive data from adjacent memory locations. This information disclosure can include internal application data, memory addresses, or even credentials stored in nearby memory segments, depending on the specific memory layout at the time of exploitation.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple information disclosure, as it represents a foundational security weakness that can serve as a stepping stone for more sophisticated attacks. An attacker leveraging this vulnerability could potentially gather intelligence about the target system's memory layout, application state, or even extract sensitive information from the application's memory space. The vulnerability aligns with several techniques documented in the attack pattern taxonomy, particularly those involving memory corruption and information gathering phases of the attack lifecycle. This makes it a valuable target for threat actors seeking to establish persistent access or escalate privileges within compromised environments.
Organizations should prioritize immediate patching of all affected Adobe Acrobat and Reader installations to remediate this vulnerability. The recommended mitigation strategy involves deploying the latest security updates from Adobe, which typically include enhanced input validation routines and proper bounds checking mechanisms. Additionally, implementing network-based intrusion detection systems can help identify attempts to deliver malicious PDF files that exploit this vulnerability. Security teams should also consider restricting PDF file handling capabilities in high-security environments, particularly when dealing with untrusted documents from external sources. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of maintaining up-to-date software versions and implementing defense-in-depth strategies that include application whitelisting, sandboxing, and regular security assessments to prevent exploitation of similar memory corruption vulnerabilities.