CVE-2014-0510

Vulnerability

A heap-based buffer overflow exists in Adobe Flash Player version 12.0.0.77 [2]. The flaw resides in the Flash Player rendering engine and can be triggered by processing a specially crafted SWF file. The vulnerability was demonstrated at the Pwn2Own competition at CanSecWest 2014, indicating a reliable exploitation path. Affected versions include Adobe Flash Player 12.0.0.77 and possibly earlier versions as per vendor advisories [1][2].

Exploitation

An unauthenticated remote attacker can exploit this vulnerability by convincing a user to open a malicious SWF file, typically via a web page or email attachment. No special privileges or user interaction beyond opening the file are required. The exploit bypasses the Flash Player sandbox protection mechanism, as demonstrated during the Pwn2Own competition [1][2].

Impact

Successful exploitation allows arbitrary code execution in the context of the user running Flash Player. Additionally, the sandbox bypass enables the attacker to escape the restricted environment, potentially leading to full system compromise. The attacker gains the same privileges as the affected user [1][2].

Mitigation

Adobe released updates to address this vulnerability. For Windows and Mac, update to Flash Player 13.0.0.206 or later. For Linux, update to 11.2.202.359 or later [2]. Red Hat provided updated packages via RHSA-2014:0496 [1]. No workaround is available. The vulnerability is not listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog as of this writing.