CVE-2024-47450
📋 TL;DR
Adobe Illustrator versions 28.7.1 and earlier contain a heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability that could allow arbitrary code execution when a user opens a malicious file. This affects all users running vulnerable versions of Illustrator on any operating system. Successful exploitation requires user interaction through opening a crafted file.
💻 Affected Systems
- Adobe Illustrator
📦 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.
Likely Case
Local privilege escalation or malware installation on the affected workstation when a user opens a malicious Illustrator file.
If Mitigated
No impact if users only open trusted files from verified sources and the application is properly patched.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires user interaction (opening malicious file) and knowledge of heap manipulation techniques. No public exploits known at this time.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 28.7.2 or later
Vendor Advisory: https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/illustrator/apsb24-87.html
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Open Adobe Creative Cloud application. 2. Navigate to 'Apps' tab. 3. Find Adobe Illustrator and click 'Update'. 4. Alternatively, download latest version from Adobe website. 5. Restart Illustrator after installation.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Restrict file opening
allConfigure Illustrator to only open files from trusted locations or implement application whitelisting
Disable Illustrator file associations
allRemove Illustrator as default handler for .ai and other Illustrator file formats
Windows: assoc .ai=
macOS: duti -d com.adobe.illustrator .ai
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement application control to block execution of Illustrator if not updated
- Educate users to never open Illustrator files from untrusted sources
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check Illustrator version via Help > About Illustrator. If version is 28.7.1 or earlier, system is vulnerable.Check Version:
Windows: wmic product where name="Adobe Illustrator" get version
macOS: mdls -name kMDItemVersion /Applications/Adobe\ Illustrator*/Adobe\ Illustrator.appVerify Fix Applied:
Verify Illustrator version is 28.7.2 or later in Help > About Illustrator.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Application crashes of Illustrator with heap corruption errors
- Unexpected child processes spawned from Illustrator
Network Indicators:
- Unusual outbound connections from Illustrator process post-file opening
SIEM Query:
process_name:"Illustrator.exe" AND (event_id:1000 OR event_id:1001) AND exception_code:0xc0000005