iDefense Security Advisory 05.11.10: Abobe Shockwave Player Heap Memory Indexing Vulnerability

iDefense Security Advisory 05.11.10
http://labs.idefense.com/intelligence/vulnerabilities/
May 11, 2010

I. BACKGROUND

Adobe Shockwave Player is a popular Web browser plugin. It is available
for multiple Web browsers and platforms, including Windows, and MacOS.
Shockwave Player enables Web browsers to display rich multimedia
content in the form of Shockwave videos. For more information, see the
vendor's site found at the following link:<BR> <BR>
http://get.adobe.com/shockwave

II. DESCRIPTION

Remote exploitation of a heap memory indexing vulnerability in Adobe
Systems Inc.'s Shockwave Player could allow an attacker to execute
arbitrary code with the privileges of the current user. <BR> <BR> The
vulnerability takes place during the processing of a certain malformed
file. A function calculates an offset to be used within a memory mapped
file and returns the offset value. The return value is not checked. This
can lead to a condition where an attacker is able to overwrite memory
outside the bounds of the allocated memory map.

III. ANALYSIS

Exploitation of this vulnerability results in the execution of arbitrary
code with the privileges of the user viewing the Web page. To exploit
this vulnerability, a targeted user must load a malicious file created
by an attacker. An attacker typically accomplishes this via social
engineering or injecting content into a compromised, trusted site. <BR>
<BR> Adobe Shockwave Player implements a custom memory management system
for object allocation. Due to the design of the memory allocator, an
attacker is able to predict the distance of objects within a memory
map. This condition can help facilitate reliable exploitation of this
vulnerability.

IV. DETECTION

iDefense has confirmed the existence of this vulnerability in the latest
version of Shockwave Player at the time of testing, version 11.5.6r606.
Shockwave Player 11.5.6.606 and earlier versions for Windows and
Macintosh are vulnerable.

V. WORKAROUND

The killbit for the Shockwave Player ActiveX control can be set by
creating the following registry key:<BR> <BR>
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\ActiveX
Compatibility\{233C1507-6A77-46A4-9443-F871F945D258} Under this key
create a new DWORD value called "Compatibility Flags" and set its
hexadecimal value to 400. <BR> <BR> To re-enable Shockwave Player set
the "Compatibility Flags" value to 0.

VI. VENDOR RESPONSE

Adobe has released a fix which addresses this issue. Information about
downloadable vendor updates can be found by clicking on the URLs shown.

http://get.adobe.com/shockwave/

VII. CVE INFORMATION

The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) project has assigned the
name CVE-2010-0129 to this issue. This is a candidate for inclusion in
the CVE list (http://cve.mitre.org/&#41;, which standardizes names for
security problems.

VIII. DISCLOSURE TIMELINE

03/03/2010 Initial Vendor Notification
03/03/2009 Initial Vendor Reply
05/11/2010 Coordinated Public Disclosure

IX. CREDIT

The discoverer of this vulnerability wishes to remain anonymous.

Get paid for vulnerability research
http://labs.idefense.com/methodology/vulnerability/vcp.php

Free tools, research and upcoming events
http://labs.idefense.com/

X. LEGAL NOTICES

Copyright © 2010 iDefense, Inc.

Permission is granted for the redistribution of this alert
electronically. It may not be edited in any way without the express
written consent of iDefense. If you wish to reprint the whole or any
part of this alert in any other medium other than electronically,
please e-mail [email protected] for permission.

Disclaimer: The information in the advisory is believed to be accurate
at the time of publishing based on currently available information. Use
of the information constitutes acceptance for use in an AS IS condition.
There are no warranties with regard to this information. Neither the
author nor the publisher accepts any liability for any direct,
indirect, or consequential loss or damage arising from use of, or
reliance on, this information.