CVE-2024-49507
📋 TL;DR
This CVE describes a heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability in Adobe InDesign that could allow an attacker to execute arbitrary code on a victim's system. The vulnerability affects users of InDesign Desktop versions ID18.5.2, ID19.5 and earlier. Exploitation requires the victim to open a malicious file.
💻 Affected Systems
- Adobe InDesign Desktop
📦 What is this software?
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete system compromise with attacker gaining full control of the victim's computer in the context of the current user, potentially leading to data theft, ransomware deployment, or lateral movement.
Likely Case
Local privilege escalation or malware installation when a user opens a malicious InDesign file, potentially leading to data exfiltration or system disruption.
If Mitigated
No impact if users only open trusted files from verified sources and have proper endpoint protection.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires user interaction (opening malicious file). No public exploit code has been reported as of the advisory date.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: ID19.5.1 and later for InDesign 19.x; ID18.5.3 and later for InDesign 18.x
Vendor Advisory: https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/indesign/apsb24-88.html
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Open Adobe Creative Cloud application. 2. Navigate to 'Apps' tab. 3. Find Adobe InDesign and click 'Update'. 4. Follow on-screen prompts to complete installation. 5. Restart computer after update completes.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Restrict InDesign file execution
allConfigure application control policies to block 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
- Deploy 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 ID18.5.2 or earlier for InDesign 18.x, or ID19.5 or earlier for InDesign 19.x, 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 version is ID18.5.3 or later for InDesign 18.x, or ID19.5.1 or later for InDesign 19.x.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual InDesign process crashes
- Suspicious file access patterns from InDesign process
- Creation of unexpected child processes from InDesign
Network Indicators:
- Outbound connections from InDesign process to unknown IPs
- DNS queries for suspicious domains from InDesign process
SIEM Query:
process_name:"InDesign.exe" AND (event_type:process_crash OR parent_process:unusual OR network_connection:external)