dbcve.org
Flash PlayerApplication · Adobe

CVE-2014-0589

HIGH · 10.0 CVSS v2.0 Published 2014-11-11
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 11.2.202.418 / 13.0.0.252 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click Patch available

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.

NVD · unedited
Heap-based buffer overflow in Adobe Flash Player before 13.0.0.252 and 14.x and 15.x before 15.0.0.223 on Windows and OS X and before 11.2.202.418 on Linux, Adobe AIR before 15.0.0.356, Adobe AIR SDK before 15.0.0.356, and Adobe AIR SDK & Compiler before 15.0.0.356 allows attackers to execute arbitrary code via unspecified vectors, a different vulnerability than CVE-2014-0582.

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.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

Heap-based buffer overflow in Adobe Flash Player and AIR products allowing arbitrary code execution via unspecified vectors. The vulnerability affects multiple versions across Windows, OS X, and Linux platforms.

MitigationApply available vendor patches by updating Adobe Flash Player to 13.0.0.252/14.x/15.0.0.223 or later (11.2.202.418 for Linux) and Adobe AIR to 15.0.0.356 or later. Note: Adobe Flash reached end-of-life in 2020; consider removing Flash entirely if no longer needed.

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

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.

NVD · CPE data
Flash PlayerApplication
Affected:>= 13.0, < 13.0.0.252>= 14.0, <= 14.0.0.179>= 15.0, < 15.0.0.223>= 11.0, < 11.2.202.418
Air SdkApplication
Affected:<= 15.0.0.356
AirApplication
Affected:<= 15.0.0.356
Air Sdk \& CompilerApplication
Affected:< 15.0.0.356

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.

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? 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.

dbcve checks

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

  1. Identify installed Flash Player version in browsers
    In Chrome, navigate to chrome://components/ and look for 'Flash Player' entry. In Firefox, go to Add-ons > Plugins. In Internet Explorer, find 'Shockwave Flash Object' via Manage Add-ons. Record the version number displayed.
    Affected if The displayed version falls within any of these ranges: 13.0.0.0 through 13.0.0.251, 14.0.0.0 through 14.0.0.179, 15.0.0.0 through 15.0.0.222, or 11.0.0.0 through 11.2.202.417 (Linux-specific).
  2. Check for standalone Adobe Flash Player
    Locate the Flash Player executable (flashplayer*.exe on Windows, Flash Player.app on macOS) and right-click to view Properties, or run the executable with a version check flag if available. Note the installed version.
    Affected if The standalone Flash Player version matches any of the affected version ranges listed above.
  3. Verify Adobe AIR installation status
    On Windows, open Programs and Features and look for 'Adobe AIR'. On macOS, check /Applications for Adobe AIR. If installed, retrieve the version from the application properties or About dialog.
    Affected if Adobe AIR version is 15.0.0.356 or earlier.
  4. Confirm Adobe AIR SDK or Compiler presence
    Check development systems for Adobe AIR SDK installations. Look in common SDK directories (such as C:\Program Files\Adobe\ or /opt/) for AIR SDK folders. Inspect the SDK version file if present.
    Affected if Adobe AIR SDK or AIR SDK & Compiler version is below 15.0.0.356.
  5. Determine if vulnerable software is actively used
    Review browser profiles for Flash plugin enablement status. Check if Adobe AIR applications are installed and configured to run. Examine system startup items and browser extensions related to Flash or AIR.
    Affected if Any affected version of Flash Player or Adobe AIR is installed AND the software is enabled or an AIR application is configured to run.

A system is affected if any version of Adobe Flash Player within the listed vulnerable ranges or Adobe AIR version 15.0.0.356 or earlier is installed and the software is enabled or actively used.

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

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 11.2.202.418 / 13.0.0.252 / 15.0.0.223 or later
Fixed in 11.2.202.41813.0.0.25215.0.0.223
Vendor patch helpx.adobe.com →
Interim mitigation

Apply available vendor patches by updating Adobe Flash Player to 13.0.0.252/14.x/15.0.0.223 or later (11.2.202.418 for Linux) and Adobe AIR to 15.0.0.356 or later. Note: Adobe Flash reached end-of-life in 2020; consider removing Flash entirely if no longer needed.

Recommended fix High confidence

Flash Player 13.0.0.252+, 14.0.0.180+, 15.0.0.223+, or 11.2.202.418+ / Adobe AIR 15.0.0.356+ / AIR SDK 15.0.0.356+

  1. 1. Identify the currently installed Adobe Flash Player or AIR version by navigating to About Flash Player or checking the application's version information.
  2. 2. Based on the current version, determine the appropriate upgrade target: for Flash Player 13.x upgrade to 13.0.0.252 or later, for 14.x upgrade to 15.0.0.223 or later, for 15.x upgrade to 15.0.0.223 or later, for 11.x (Linux) upgrade to 11.2.202.418 or later.
  3. 3. For Adobe AIR or AIR SDK installations, upgrade to version 15.0.0.356 or later.
  4. 4. Download the appropriate fixed version from the official Adobe Security Bulletin APSB14-24: http://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/flash-player/apsb14-24.html
  5. 5. Install the updated Flash Player or AIR version following the on-screen prompts.
  6. 6. Restart any browsers or applications that utilize Flash Player or AIR.
  7. 7. Verify the installation was successful by confirming the updated version number matches the fixed release.
Caveat Adobe Flash Player and AIR reached end-of-life in December 2020 and should be migrated to modern technologies; no further security updates will be available for these products

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

Fix this in Flash Player Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
5.0 hours of engineering $890
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,424.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2014-0589 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

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

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2014-0589 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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