CVE-2024-39390
📋 TL;DR
This CVE describes an out-of-bounds write vulnerability in Adobe InDesign that could allow arbitrary code execution when a user opens a malicious file. Attackers could gain full control of the affected system with the same privileges as the current user. Users of InDesign versions ID19.4, ID18.5.2 and earlier are affected.
💻 Affected Systems
- Adobe InDesign
📦 What is this software?
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete system compromise with attacker gaining the same privileges as the logged-in user, potentially leading to data theft, ransomware deployment, or lateral movement within the network.
Likely Case
Local privilege escalation leading to malware installation, data exfiltration, or persistence mechanisms being established on the compromised workstation.
If Mitigated
Limited impact with proper application sandboxing and user privilege restrictions, potentially contained to the InDesign process only.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires user interaction (opening malicious file). No public exploit code has been identified as of the advisory date.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: ID19.5 and ID18.5.3
Vendor Advisory: https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/indesign/apsb24-56.html
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Open Adobe Creative Cloud application. 2. Navigate to the 'Apps' section. 3. Find Adobe InDesign and click 'Update'. 4. Alternatively, download the update directly from Adobe's website. 5. Restart InDesign after installation completes.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Restrict InDesign file execution
allConfigure application control policies to restrict execution of InDesign files from untrusted sources
User awareness training
allTrain users to only open InDesign files from trusted sources and verify file integrity
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement application whitelisting to prevent execution of malicious InDesign files
- Use endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions to monitor for suspicious InDesign process behavior
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check InDesign version via Help > About InDesign. If version is ID19.4 or earlier, or ID18.5.2 or earlier, the system is vulnerable.Check Version:
On Windows: Check via Control Panel > Programs > Programs and Features. On macOS: Click Adobe InDesign > About InDesign from menu bar.Verify Fix Applied:
Verify InDesign version is ID19.5 or later, or ID18.5.3 or later after applying the update.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unexpected InDesign crashes
- Suspicious child processes spawned from InDesign
- Unusual file access patterns from InDesign process
Network Indicators:
- Outbound connections from InDesign process to unknown IPs
- DNS queries for suspicious domains from InDesign
SIEM Query:
process_name:"InDesign.exe" AND (event_type:"process_creation" OR event_type:"crash")