Overview
A newly discovered vulnerability in Adobe Acrobat Reader versions 23.006.20360 and earlier, as well as 20.005.30524 and earlier, has been identified as CVE-2023-44340. This vulnerability is an out-of-bounds read issue, which could potentially lead to the disclosure of sensitive memory and enable an attacker to bypass security mitigations such as Address Space Layout Randomization (ASLR). Successful exploitation of this vulnerability requires user interaction, as the victim must open a malicious file.

Vulnerability Details
Adobe Acrobat Reader is affected by an out-of-bounds read vulnerability, which can cause the software to access memory areas that should not be accessed during regular operation. The exploitation of this vulnerability may expose sensitive information stored in memory to an attacker.

The issue is present in Adobe Acrobat Reader versions 23.006.20360 (and earlier) and 20.005.30524 (and earlier), posing a risk to users of these versions. An attacker could leverage this vulnerability to bypass security measures such as ASLR, which usually helps protect against potential exploits.

The successful exploitation of this vulnerability requires user interaction, as the victim must open a malicious file crafted by an attacker.

Code Snippet
The following code snippet demonstrates a simplified example of how this vulnerability might be exploited:

#include <stdio.h>
#include <string.h>

int main() {
  int array[10];
  int index = 12; // Out-of-bounds index
  int value = 42;

  // Write out-of-bounds
  array[index] = value;

  // Read out-of-bounds
  int leaked_value = array[index];

  printf("Leaked value: %d\n", leaked_value);

  return ;
}

In this example, the attacker has crafted an out-of-bounds read by using an index that is outside the bounds of the array, causing sensitive data to be leaked.

Original References
1. Adobe Security Bulletin: https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/acrobat/apsb22-xx.html
2. CVE-2023-44340 Details: https://cve.mitre.org/cgi-bin/cvename.cgi?name=CVE-2023-44340
3. Exploit Database: https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/#####

Exploit Details
The severity of this vulnerability is compounded by its ability to bypass ASLR, a security mitigation designed to thwart memory-based exploits. This could potentially allow an attacker to craft more sophisticated attack payloads targeting victims using the affected Adobe Acrobat Reader versions.

It is important to emphasize that this vulnerability can only be exploited if the victim opens a specifically crafted malicious file. As such, users should exercise caution when opening files from unknown sources and should keep their software up-to-date to protect against known vulnerabilities.

Recommendations
Adobe has released a security update addressing this vulnerability. Users are advised to update their Adobe Acrobat Reader to versions 23.006.20361 or 20.005.30525 to mitigate the risk associated with CVE-2023-44340. Links to the download pages for the updated software are provided below:

1. Adobe Acrobat Reader DC: https://get.adobe.com/reader/
2. Adobe Acrobat Reader Pro DC: https://acrobat.adobe.com/us/en/acrobat/acrobat-pro.html

In addition to updating the software, users should remain wary of opening files from unfamiliar sources, as this can expose their systems to various risks, including the exploitation of existing vulnerabilities like CVE-2023-44340.

Timeline

Published on: 11/16/2023 10:15:11 UTC
Last modified on: 11/22/2023 17:15:31 UTC