CVE-2020-9662
📋 TL;DR
Adobe After Effects versions 17.1 and earlier contain an out-of-bounds write vulnerability that could allow attackers to execute arbitrary code on affected systems. This affects users running vulnerable versions of Adobe After Effects on any supported operating system. Successful exploitation requires user interaction, such as opening a malicious project file.
💻 Affected Systems
- Adobe After Effects
📦 What is this software?
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete system compromise with attacker gaining full control over the affected system, potentially leading to data theft, ransomware deployment, or lateral movement within the network.
Likely Case
Local privilege escalation or arbitrary code execution within the context of the current user, allowing attackers to install malware, steal credentials, or access sensitive files.
If Mitigated
Limited impact with proper application sandboxing and user privilege restrictions, potentially containing the exploit to the application's memory space.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires user interaction to open a malicious project file. No public proof-of-concept has been released.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 17.1.1 and later
Vendor Advisory: https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/after_effects/apsb20-35.html
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Open Adobe Creative Cloud application
2. Navigate to 'Apps' section
3. Find Adobe After Effects
4. Click 'Update' button
5. Restart computer after installation completes
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Restrict project file execution
allBlock execution of untrusted After Effects project files through application control policies
Run with reduced privileges
allRun Adobe After Effects with standard user privileges instead of administrative rights
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Isolate affected systems from critical network segments
- Implement application whitelisting to prevent execution of malicious payloads
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check Adobe After Effects version in Help > About After Effects menuCheck Version:
Not applicable - check through application GUIVerify Fix Applied:
Verify version is 17.1.1 or later in Help > About After Effects menu📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unexpected application crashes
- Suspicious memory access patterns in application logs
Network Indicators:
- Unusual outbound connections from After Effects process
SIEM Query:
process_name:"AfterFX.exe" AND (event_type:crash OR suspicious_file_access)