CVE-2025-43555
📋 TL;DR
An integer underflow vulnerability in Adobe Animate allows arbitrary code execution when a user opens a malicious file. This affects users of Adobe Animate versions 24.0.8, 23.0.11 and earlier. Successful exploitation requires user interaction but runs code with the victim's privileges.
💻 Affected Systems
- Adobe Animate
📦 What is this software?
Animate by Adobe
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 persistent access.
Likely Case
Malicious document leads to code execution, enabling malware installation, credential harvesting, or lateral movement within the network.
If Mitigated
Limited impact due to user awareness training preventing malicious file opens, or execution in sandboxed environments.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires user interaction (opening malicious file). No public exploit code available at time of advisory.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Update to Animate 24.0.9 or 23.0.12
Vendor Advisory: https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/animate/apsb25-42.html
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Open Adobe Animate. 2. Go to Help > Check for Updates. 3. Follow prompts to install latest version. 4. Restart Animate after installation.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable automatic file opening
allConfigure system to not automatically open downloaded files and require explicit user action.
Use application sandboxing
allRun Adobe Animate in a sandboxed environment to limit potential damage from exploitation.
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement strict file opening policies and user training to avoid opening untrusted Animate files
- Deploy endpoint detection and response (EDR) to monitor for suspicious Animate process behavior
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check Adobe Animate version via Help > About Adobe Animate. If version is 24.0.8 or earlier, or 23.0.11 or earlier, system is vulnerable.Check Version:
On Windows: Check program version in Control Panel > Programs. On macOS: Select Adobe Animate > Get Info.Verify Fix Applied:
Verify version is 24.0.9 or later, or 23.0.12 or later after update.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual Animate process spawning child processes
- Animate crashes with memory access violations
Network Indicators:
- Animate process making unexpected outbound connections after file open
SIEM Query:
process_name:"Animate.exe" AND (child_process_count > 3 OR network_connection_count > 5)