Adobe Flash Player Memory Corruption
CVE-2015-3043 is a critical-severity out-of-bounds write vulnerability in Flash Player from Adobe, with a CVSS 3.1 base score of 9.8 out of 10. It can be exploited remotely over the network by an unauthenticated attacker, without any action from a user. The record lists versions 11.2.202.457, 13.0.0.281, 17.0.0.169 as the first without the flaw, so updating Flash Player to one of those releases or later removes the exposure. CISA added it to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalogue on March 3, 2022, which means attacks have been observed in the wild.
Attackers are already exploiting this vulnerability, according to CISA.
What to do
- Update Flash Player to 11.2.202.457 or 13.0.0.281 or 17.0.0.169, whichever matches your release line, or a later version.
- CISA's required action: The impacted product is end-of-life and should be disconnected if still in use.
- Until you can update, restrict network access to the affected service so it is not reachable from untrusted networks.
Affected products and versions
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adobe | Flash Player | before 11.2.202.457; before 13.0.0.281; 14.0.0.125 up to, but not including, 17.0.0.169 | 11.2.202.457, 13.0.0.281, 17.0.0.169 |
| Novell | Suse Linux Enterprise Desktop | 11.0; 12.0 | Not stated |
| Novell | Suse Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension | 12.0 | Not stated |
| openSUSE | Evergreen | 11.4 | Not stated |
| openSUSE | Opensuse | 13.1; 13.2 | Not stated |
| Red Hat | Enterprise Linux Desktop | 5.0; 6.0 | Not stated |
| Red Hat | Enterprise Linux EUS | 6.6 | Not stated |
| Red Hat | Enterprise Linux Server | 5.0; 6.0 | Not stated |
| Red Hat | Enterprise Linux Server AUS | 6.6 | Not stated |
| Red Hat | Enterprise Linux Server From Rhui | 5.0; 6.0 | Not stated |
| Red Hat | Enterprise Linux Workstation | 5.0; 6.0 | Not stated |
Version data comes from NVD's product matching. Confirm against the vendor advisory before deciding you are unaffected.
How the severity score breaks down
- Attack vector
- NetworkCan be exploited remotely over a network, including the internet.
- Attack complexity
- LowNo special conditions are needed; the attack works reliably.
- Privileges required
- NoneNo account or login is needed.
- User interaction
- NoneNo action by a victim is required.
- Scope
- UnchangedImpact stays within the vulnerable component.
- Confidentiality
- HighAll data handled by the component can be read.
- Integrity
- HighData or code can be modified at will.
- Availability
- HighThe component can be taken down completely.
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H. Scored by NVD.
| Scoring system | Score | Severity | Scored by |
|---|---|---|---|
| CVSS 3.1 | 9.8 | Critical | NVD |
| CVSS 3.1 | 7.8 | High | CISA (ADP) |
| CVSS 2.0 | 10.0 | High | NVD |
Official description
Adobe Flash Player before 13.0.0.281 and 14.x through 17.x before 17.0.0.169 on Windows and OS X and before 11.2.202.457 on Linux allows attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (memory corruption) via unspecified vectors, as exploited in the wild in April 2015, a different vulnerability than CVE-2015-0347, CVE-2015-0350, CVE-2015-0352, CVE-2015-0353, CVE-2015-0354, CVE-2015-0355, CVE-2015-0360, CVE-2015-3038, CVE-2015-3041, and CVE-2015-3042.
Source: the CVE record as published by its numbering authority, via NVD and CVE.org.
The underlying weakness: Out-of-bounds Write
The product writes data past the end, or before the beginning, of the intended buffer.
How developers prevent this class of flaw
- Use a language that does not allow this weakness to occur or provides constructs that make this weakness easier to avoid. For example, many languages that perform their own memory management, such as Java and Perl, are not subject to buffer overflows. Other languages, such as Ada and C#, typically provide overflow protection, but the protection can be disabled by the programmer. Be wary that a language's interface to native code may still be subject to overflows, even if the language itself is theoretically safe.
- Use a vetted library or framework that does not allow this weakness to occur or provides constructs that make this weakness easier to avoid. Examples include the Safe C String Library (SafeStr) by Messier and Viega, and the Strsafe.h library from Microsoft. These libraries provide safer versions of overflow-prone string-handling functions.
- Use automatic buffer overflow detection mechanisms that are offered by certain compilers or compiler extensions. Examples include: the Microsoft Visual Studio /GS flag, Fedora/Red Hat FORTIFY_SOURCE GCC flag, StackGuard, and ProPolice, which provide various mechanisms including canary-based detection and range/index checking. D3-SFCV (Stack Frame Canary Validation) from D3FEND discusses canary-based detection in detail.
Timeline
- CVE record published.
- Added to CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalogue.
- Deadline for US federal agencies to remediate, set by CISA.
- CISA published its SSVC assessment (exploitation: active, automatable: no, technical impact: total).
- Record last changed materially (score, affected products, status or references).
References
Third-party and government advisories
- lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2015-04/msg00010.htmlMailing List, Third Party Advisory
- lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2015-04/msg00011.htmlMailing List, Third Party Advisory
- lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2015-04/msg00012.htmlMailing List, Third Party Advisory
- lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2015-04/msg00013.htmlMailing List, Third Party Advisory
- rhn.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2015-0813.htmlThird Party Advisory
- security.gentoo.org/glsa/201504-07Third Party Advisory
- cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2015-3043US Government Resource
Technical write-ups (may include proof of concept)
- exploit-db.com/exploits/37536/Exploit, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
Other references
- github.com/cisagov/vulnrichment/issues/196Issue Tracking
Other vulnerabilities in Flash Player
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Adobe Flash Player Use-After-Free Exploited
- 7.8 High severity
- 7.8 High severity
Adobe Flash Player Use-After-Free Exploited
- 8.8 High severity
Adobe Flash Player Type Confusion Exploited
- 8.8 High severity
Adobe Flash Player Use-After-Free Exploited
- 8.8 High severity
Adobe Flash Player Use-After-Free Exploited
Recent Out-of-bounds Write vulnerabilities
- 7.8 High severity
Microsoft Office Memory Corruption Exploited
- 7.8 High severity
Apple OS X Heap-Based Buffer Overflow Exploited
- 9.3 High severity
Microsoft Word Memory Corruption Exploited
- 8.8 High severity
Microsoft Windows Out-of-Bounds Write Exploited
- 9.8 Critical severity
- 8.8 High severity
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