CVE-2020-9749
📋 TL;DR
CVE-2020-9749 is an out-of-bounds read vulnerability in Adobe Animate that could allow arbitrary code execution when a user opens a malicious .fla file. This affects Adobe Animate version 20.5 and earlier. Attackers could gain the same privileges as the current user through crafted animation files.
💻 Affected Systems
- Adobe Animate
📦 What is this software?
Animate by Adobe
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Full system compromise with attacker gaining the same privileges as the current user, potentially leading to data theft, ransomware deployment, or lateral movement within the network.
Likely Case
Local privilege escalation leading to user account compromise, file system access, and potential credential harvesting from the affected system.
If Mitigated
Limited impact with proper application sandboxing and user privilege restrictions, potentially resulting in application crash rather than code execution.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires user interaction (opening malicious file). No public exploit code was available at disclosure time.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Adobe Animate 20.6 or later
Vendor Advisory: https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/animate/apsb20-61.html
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Open Adobe Creative Cloud application. 2. Navigate to 'Apps' section. 3. Find Adobe Animate and click 'Update'. 4. Restart computer after update completes.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable .fla file association
allPrevent Animate from automatically opening .fla files by changing file associations
Windows: Control Panel > Default Programs > Associate a file type or protocol with a program
macOS: Right-click .fla file > Get Info > Open With > Change to different application
User awareness training
allTrain users to only open .fla files from trusted sources
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Restrict user privileges to standard user accounts (not administrator)
- Implement application whitelisting to prevent execution of unauthorized binaries
- Use endpoint protection with behavior monitoring for suspicious file operations
- Segment network to limit lateral movement potential
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check Adobe Animate version: Open Animate > Help > About Adobe Animate. If version is 20.5 or earlier, system is vulnerable.Check Version:
Windows: wmic product where "name like 'Adobe Animate%'" get version
macOS: /Applications/Adobe\ Animate\ */Adobe\ Animate.app/Contents/Info.plist | grep -A1 CFBundleShortVersionStringVerify Fix Applied:
Verify version is 20.6 or later in About dialog. Test opening known safe .fla files to ensure functionality.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Application crashes of Adobe Animate
- Unexpected process creation from Animate.exe
- Suspicious file operations from Animate process
Network Indicators:
- Unusual outbound connections from Animate process
- DNS requests for suspicious domains after Animate execution
SIEM Query:
process_name:"Animate.exe" AND (event_type:"process_creation" OR event_type:"application_crash")