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Flash PlayerApplication · Adobe

CVE-2015-3090

HIGH · 10.0 CVSS v2.0 Published 2015-05-13
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 17.0.0.144 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
High EPSS 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
Adobe Flash Player before 13.0.0.289 and 14.x through 17.x before 17.0.0.188 on Windows and OS X and before 11.2.202.460 on Linux, Adobe AIR before 17.0.0.172, Adobe AIR SDK before 17.0.0.172, and Adobe AIR SDK & Compiler before 17.0.0.172 allow attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (memory corruption) via unspecified vectors, a different vulnerability than CVE-2015-3078, CVE-2015-3089, and CVE-2015-3093.

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

Memory corruption vulnerability in Adobe Flash Player and Adobe AIR allowing arbitrary code execution or denial of service. Affects specific versions across Windows, OS X, and Linux platforms. Exploitation requires user interaction (e.g., visiting malicious webpage).

MitigationApply vendor patches: update Flash Player to 13.0.0.289, 17.0.0.188 (Windows/OS X), or 11.2.202.460 (Linux); update AIR to 17.0.0.172 or later. Consider disabling Flash Player if unnecessary.

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:<= 13.0.0.264= 14.0.0.125= 14.0.0.145= 14.0.0.176= 14.0.0.179= 15.0.0.152= 15.0.0.167= 15.0.0.189= 15.0.0.223= 15.0.0.239= 15.0.0.246= 16.0.0.235
AirApplication
Affected:<= 17.0.0.144
Air SdkApplication
Affected:<= 17.0.0.144
Air Sdk \& CompilerApplication
Affected:<= 17.0.0.144

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. Check Flash Player version in browser
    Visit a website that displays the Flash Player version (e.g., adobe.com/software/flash/about), or open Internet Explorer and navigate to Tools > Manage Add-ons > Shockwave Flash Object to see the version
    Affected if The displayed version matches any of these: 13.0.0.264 or earlier; 14.0.0.125; 14.0.0.145; 14.0.0.176; 14.0.0.179; 15.0.0.152; 15.0.0.167; 15.0.0.189; 15.0.0.223; 15.0.0.239; 15.0.0.246; 16.0.0.235
  2. Check Adobe AIR installation version on Windows
    Open Control Panel > Programs and Features, locate Adobe AIR in the list, and note the version column
    Affected if The version listed is 17.0.0.144 or earlier
  3. Check Adobe AIR SDK version
    If you have the AIR SDK installed, navigate to the SDK directory and open the AIRSDKReadme.txt or check the version file included in the SDK package
    Affected if The SDK version is 17.0.0.144 or earlier
  4. Check if Flash Player is enabled in your browser
    In your browser settings, verify whether the Flash Player plugin or extension is currently enabled (Chrome: chrome://plugins; Firefox: Add-ons > Plugins)
    Affected if Flash Player is enabled and the version falls within the affected ranges listed above

Your environment is affected if Adobe Flash Player is installed and enabled with a version matching the listed affected versions, or if Adobe AIR/SDK version is 17.0.0.144 or earlier.

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 a release after 17.0.0.144
Vendor patch helpx.adobe.com →
Interim mitigation

Apply vendor patches: update Flash Player to 13.0.0.289, 17.0.0.188 (Windows/OS X), or 11.2.202.460 (Linux); update AIR to 17.0.0.172 or later. Consider disabling Flash Player if unnecessary.

Recommended fix High confidence

Flash Player 13.0.0.289+, 17.0.0.188+ (Windows/OS X), 11.2.202.460+ (Linux); Adobe AIR/SDK 17.0.0.172+

  1. 1. 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'
  2. 2. For Flash Player 13.x users: Upgrade to version 13.0.0.289 or later from the Adobe Flash Player download center
  3. 3. For Flash Player 14.x through 17.x users (Windows/OS X): Upgrade to version 17.0.0.188 or later
  4. 4. For Flash Player 11.x users (Linux): Upgrade to version 11.2.202.460 or later
  5. 5. For Adobe AIR users: Upgrade to version 17.0.0.172 or later
  6. 6. For Adobe AIR SDK users: Upgrade to version 17.0.0.172 or later
  7. 7. For Adobe AIR SDK & Compiler users: Upgrade to version 17.0.0.172 or later
  8. 8. Restart any browser instances and verify the updated version via the Flash Player Help > About dialog
Caveat Adobe Flash Player reached end-of-life on December 31, 2020; consider migrating away from Flash-based content

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
  • Implementation1.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
6.0 hours of engineering $1,060
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Scan for this in your stack

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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-2015-3090 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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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