CVE-2018-5061 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 affects the parsing of PDF documents. This vulnerability falls under the Common Weakness Enumeration category CWE-125, which describes out-of-bounds read conditions where an application attempts to read memory beyond the allocated buffer boundaries. The flaw occurs when the software processes malformed PDF files that contain specially crafted data structures designed to trigger memory access violations during document parsing operations.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability involves the improper validation of input data within the PDF parser component of Adobe's document processing engine. When a malicious PDF file is opened, the parser fails to properly bounds-check array indices or buffer sizes, allowing an attacker to craft a document that causes the application to read memory locations outside the intended data structures. This out-of-bounds memory access can result in information disclosure, where sensitive data from adjacent memory regions may be inadvertently exposed to the attacker.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability represents a significant risk to enterprise environments where Adobe Reader is widely deployed for document viewing and sharing. Attackers can exploit this weakness by delivering malicious PDF attachments through phishing campaigns, social engineering, or compromised websites. Successful exploitation allows adversaries to extract potentially sensitive information from the application's memory space, including credentials, session tokens, or other confidential data that may be stored in adjacent memory locations. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it can be triggered through simple document opening actions, requiring no special privileges or user interaction beyond normal document consumption.
The impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple information disclosure, as it can potentially enable more sophisticated attacks when combined with other exploitation techniques. Organizations should prioritize immediate patching of affected Adobe Reader installations, as the vulnerability exists in multiple product versions across different release cycles. Security teams should implement network-based protections such as PDF content filtering and sandboxing measures to mitigate risk while patches are deployed. Additionally, user education programs should emphasize the importance of only opening PDF documents from trusted sources and maintaining up-to-date software versions to prevent exploitation attempts. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of proper input validation and memory safety practices in document processing applications, aligning with ATT&CK technique T1059.007 for execution through PDF files and T1068 for privilege escalation through application vulnerabilities.