Flash PlayerApplication · Adobe

CVE-2014-0556

HIGH · 10.0 CVSS v2.0 Published 2014-09-10

Fix available

A fix is available. Upgrade to after 14.0.0.179 or later.

See remediation →

100/100

Remediation priority · Urgent

High EPSS Public exploit Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click Patch available

Official description

NVD · unedited

Heap-based buffer overflow in Adobe Flash Player before 13.0.0.244 and 14.x and 15.x before 15.0.0.152 on Windows and OS X and before 11.2.202.406 on Linux, Adobe AIR before 15.0.0.249 on Windows and OS X and before 15.0.0.252 on Android, Adobe AIR SDK before 15.0.0.249, and Adobe AIR SDK & Compiler before 15.0.0.249 allows attackers to execute arbitrary code via unspecified vectors, a different vulnerability than CVE-2014-0559.

Technical summary

dbcve analysis · moderate confidence

Heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability in Adobe Flash Player and AIR allowing remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via unspecified vectors. The flaw exists in the rendering of specially crafted Flash content and enables complete system compromise.

MitigationUpdate Adobe Flash Player to version 13.0.0.244 or later (14.x/15.x to 15.0.0.152+), Linux to 11.2.202.406+, and Adobe AIR to 15.0.0.249+ (Windows/OS X) or 15.0.0.252+ (Android). Remove or disable Flash where possible as end-of-life approaches.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions

NVD · CPE data

Flash PlayerApplication

Affected:<= 13.0.0.241= 13.0.0.182= 13.0.0.201= 13.0.0.206= 13.0.0.214= 13.0.0.223= 13.0.0.231= 14.0.0.125= 14.0.0.145= 14.0.0.176= 14.0.0.179= 15.0.0.144

Adobe Air SdkApplication

Affected:<= 14.0.0.178= 13.0.0.83= 13.0.0.111= 14.0.0.110= 14.0.0.137

Adobe AirApplication

Affected:<= 14.0.0.179= 13.0.0.83= 13.0.0.111= 14.0.0.110= 14.0.0.137<= 14.0.0.178

CVSS breakdown

From the vector

Attack vector: Network
Complexity: Low
Authentication: None
Confidentiality: Complete
Integrity: Complete
Availability: Complete

AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C

Am I affected?

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

Identify installed Adobe Flash Player version

On Windows, check the file version of npppdf.dll or flash*.ocx in the System32 or SysWOW64 directories. On macOS, check /Library/Application Support/Adobe/Flash Player/. On Linux, check /usr/lib/flash-plugin/ or /usr/lib64/flash-plugin/. Alternatively, visit Adobe's version check page at https://www.adobe.com/software/flash/about/

Affected if The installed version is 13.0.0.241 or earlier, or matches any of these specific versions: 13.0.0.182, 13.0.0.201, 13.0.0.206, 13.0.0.214, 13.0.0.223, 13.0.0.231, 14.0.0.125, 14.0.0.145, 14.0.0.176, 14.0.0.179, or 15.0.0.144
Identify installed Adobe AIR version

On Windows, check Add/Remove Programs or the file version of AIR.dll in the Adobe AIR directory. On macOS, check /Library/Application Support/Adobe AIR/. Run 'adobe-air --version' from command line if available.

Affected if The installed version is 14.0.0.179 or earlier, or matches any of these specific versions: 13.0.0.83, 13.0.0.111, 14.0.0.110, or 14.0.0.137
Identify installed Adobe AIR SDK version

Check the SDK version file or airmxmlc.exe version in the AIR SDK installation directory. Common paths include C:\Program Files\Adobe\AIR SDK or /usr/local/AIR_SDK. Run 'sdk/bin/adt -version' if available.

Affected if The installed SDK version is 14.0.0.178 or earlier, or matches any of these specific versions: 13.0.0.83, 13.0.0.111, 14.0.0.110, or 14.0.0.137

A system is affected if Adobe Flash Player, Adobe AIR, or Adobe AIR SDK matching any of the vulnerable versions listed above is installed and the vulnerable rendering feature is in use.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Remediation

dbcve · scoped

Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 14.0.0.179

Vendor patch helpx.adobe.com →

Interim mitigation

Update Adobe Flash Player to version 13.0.0.244 or later (14.x/15.x to 15.0.0.152+), Linux to 11.2.202.406+, and Adobe AIR to 15.0.0.249+ (Windows/OS X) or 15.0.0.252+ (Android). Remove or disable Flash where possible as end-of-life approaches.

Recommended fix High confidence

Flash Player 13.0.0.244 (13.x branch), 15.0.0.152 (14.x/15.x), or 11.2.202.406 (Linux); Adobe AIR 15.0.0.249 (Windows/OS X), 15.0.0.252 (Android); Adobe AIR SDK 15.0.0.249

Identify the currently installed Adobe Flash Player version by navigating to 'About Flash Player' in the Help menu or visiting https://helpx.adobe.com/flash-player.html
Identify the currently installed Adobe AIR version from the installed programs list in Control Panel or System Preferences
Download the patched version from the official Adobe security bulletin at http://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/flash-player/apsb14-21.html
For Flash Player 13.x on Windows/OS X: upgrade to version 13.0.0.244 or later
For Flash Player 14.x/15.x on Windows/OS X: upgrade to version 15.0.0.152 or later
For Flash Player on Linux: upgrade to version 11.2.202.406 or later
For Adobe AIR on Windows/OS X: upgrade to version 15.0.0.249 or later
For Adobe AIR on Android: upgrade to version 15.0.0.252 or later

Caveat Flash Player reached end-of-life on December 31, 2020; consider migrating away from Flash-based content as modern browsers have deprecated and removed Flash support

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Flash Player Scoped from the published advisory

Consultation2.0 h
Implementation4.0 h
Testing2.0 h
Review / QA1.0 h

9.0 hours of engineering $1,600

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Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally

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References

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2014-0556 in production — separate from our analysis above.

Notes0 Guidelines

Know something about CVE-2014-0556?

The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.

The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
A config change or rule that shut the vector down
A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here

Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data

At a glance

A fix existsUpgrade to after 14.0.0.179 or later

Severity 10.0 High

Exploit likelihood EPSS, next 30 days 84.3%

Affects: Flash Player

Remediation

A high-priority fix

Fix this in Flash Player 9 hrs · Low

Typical engagement from $1,600

Get a fix See the full breakdown ↓

A high-priority vulnerability. Send your environment and a specialist will scope CVE-2014-0556 and return a fixed quote and timeline.

You’ll deal with our team directly and deploy the reviewed fix to staging first — never straight to production.

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

Check your environment

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

Scan for this in your stack

References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Practitioner notes

No notes yet

Official description

Technical summary

Affected products & versions

CVSS breakdown

Am I affected?

Remediation

References