CVE-2020-9575
📋 TL;DR
Adobe Illustrator versions 24.1.2 and earlier contain a memory corruption vulnerability that could allow attackers to execute arbitrary code on affected systems. This affects users who open maliciously crafted files with vulnerable versions of Illustrator. Successful exploitation could give attackers control over the victim's system.
💻 Affected Systems
- Adobe Illustrator
📦 What is this software?
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete system compromise with attacker gaining full control, data theft, ransomware deployment, or lateral movement within the network.
Likely Case
Local privilege escalation or arbitrary code execution when user opens a malicious file, potentially leading to malware installation or data exfiltration.
If Mitigated
Limited impact if proper file validation, application sandboxing, and least privilege principles are enforced.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires user interaction (opening malicious file). No public exploit code was available at advisory publication.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 24.1.3 or later
Vendor Advisory: https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/illustrator/apsb20-37.html
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Open Adobe Creative Cloud application. 2. Navigate to 'Apps' section. 3. Find Adobe Illustrator and click 'Update'. 4. Alternatively, download installer from Adobe website. 5. Restart system after installation.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Restrict file types
allBlock or restrict opening of untrusted Illustrator files (.ai, .eps, .pdf) through application control policies.
Run with reduced privileges
windowsConfigure Illustrator to run with standard user privileges rather than administrative rights.
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement application whitelisting to prevent execution of unauthorized code
- Use network segmentation to isolate Illustrator workstations from critical systems
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check Illustrator version via Help > About Illustrator. If version is 24.1.2 or earlier, system is vulnerable.Check Version:
On Windows: Check registry at HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Adobe\Illustrator\24.0\InstallPath. On macOS: Check /Applications/Adobe Illustrator 2020/Adobe Illustrator.app/Contents/Info.plistVerify Fix Applied:
Verify Illustrator version is 24.1.3 or later via Help > About Illustrator.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Application crashes of Illustrator with memory access violations
- Unusual process creation from Illustrator.exe
Network Indicators:
- Outbound connections from Illustrator process to unexpected destinations
SIEM Query:
process_name:"Illustrator.exe" AND (event_id:1000 OR event_id:1001) OR process_parent_name:"Illustrator.exe" AND process_name NOT IN (allowed_process_list)