CVE-2020-9747
📋 TL;DR
CVE-2020-9747 is a double free vulnerability in Adobe Animate that allows arbitrary code execution when a malicious .fla file is opened. Attackers can exploit this to run code with the current user's privileges. Users of Adobe Animate version 20.5 and earlier are affected.
💻 Affected Systems
- Adobe Animate
📦 What is this software?
Animate by Adobe
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete system compromise with attacker gaining full control of the user's system and potentially pivoting to other systems.
Likely Case
Local privilege escalation leading to data theft, ransomware deployment, or persistence mechanisms installation.
If Mitigated
Limited impact with only the current user's files and processes affected if proper application sandboxing exists.
🎯 Exploit Status
Requires user to open a crafted .fla file, making social engineering necessary for exploitation.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 20.6 or later
Vendor Advisory: https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/animate/apsb20-61.html
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Open Adobe Animate. 2. Go to Help > Updates. 3. Install available updates to version 20.6 or later. 4. Restart the application.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Restrict .fla file handling
allConfigure system to open .fla files with a different application or require verification before opening.
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Restrict user permissions to limit potential damage from code execution
- Implement application whitelisting to prevent unauthorized executables from running
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check Adobe Animate version in Help > About Adobe Animate. If version is 20.5 or earlier, system is vulnerable.Check Version:
Not applicable - check through application GUI on Windows/macOSVerify Fix Applied:
Verify version is 20.6 or later in Help > About Adobe Animate.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Application crashes when opening .fla files
- Unusual process spawning from Adobe Animate
Network Indicators:
- Outbound connections from Adobe Animate to unexpected destinations
SIEM Query:
process_name:"Adobe Animate" AND (event_type:crash OR parent_process:"Adobe Animate")