dbcve.org
AirApplication · Adobe

CVE-2015-8454

HIGH · 10.0 CVSS v2.0 Published 2015-12-10
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 19.0.0.241 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
Use-after-free vulnerability in Adobe Flash Player before 18.0.0.268 and 19.x and 20.x before 20.0.0.228 on Windows and OS X and before 11.2.202.554 on Linux, Adobe AIR before 20.0.0.204, Adobe AIR SDK before 20.0.0.204, and Adobe AIR SDK & Compiler before 20.0.0.204 allows attackers to execute arbitrary code via unspecified vectors, a different vulnerability than CVE-2015-8048, CVE-2015-8049, CVE-2015-8050, CVE-2015-8055, CVE-2015-8056, CVE-2015-8057, CVE-2015-8058, CVE-2015-8059, CVE-2015-8061, CVE-2015-8062, CVE-2015-8063, CVE-2015-8064, CVE-2015-8065, CVE-2015-8066, CVE-2015-8067, CVE-2015-8068, CVE-2015-8069, CVE-2015-8070, CVE-2015-8071, CVE-2015-8401, CVE-2015-8402, CVE-2015-8403, CVE-2015-8404, CVE-2015-8405, CVE-2015-8406, CVE-2015-8410, CVE-2015-8411, CVE-2015-8412, CVE-2015-8413, CVE-2015-8414, CVE-2015-8420, CVE-2015-8421, CVE-2015-8422, CVE-2015-8423, CVE-2015-8424, CVE-2015-8425, CVE-2015-8426, CVE-2015-8427, CVE-2015-8428, CVE-2015-8429, CVE-2015-8430, CVE-2015-8431, CVE-2015-8432, CVE-2015-8433, CVE-2015-8434, CVE-2015-8435, CVE-2015-8436, CVE-2015-8437, CVE-2015-8441, CVE-2015-8442, CVE-2015-8447, CVE-2015-8448, CVE-2015-8449, CVE-2015-8450, and CVE-2015-8452.

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

Use-after-free vulnerability in Adobe Flash Player and Adobe AIR allowing arbitrary code execution via unspecified vectors. The vulnerability stems from accessing memory after it has been freed, enabling potential remote code execution by attackers.

MitigationUpdate Adobe Flash Player to version 18.0.0.268/20.0.0.228 or later, and Adobe AIR to 20.0.0.204 or later. For end-of-life Flash, migrate to HTML5 and remove legacy installations.

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
AirApplication
Affected:<= 19.0.0.241
Flash PlayerApplication
Affected:<= 18.0.0.261= 19.0.0.185= 19.0.0.207= 19.0.0.226= 19.0.0.245<= 11.2.202.548
Air SdkApplication
Affected:<= 19.0.0.241
Air Sdk \& CompilerApplication
Affected:<= 19.0.0.241

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 Adobe Flash Player version on Windows
    Check the Flash Player version in Windows Registry at HKLM\SOFTWARE\Macromedia\FlashPlayer\CurrentVersion or by right-clicking the Flash Player DLL file (flash.ocx or pepflashplayer.dll) in System32 and viewing Properties > Details
    Affected if The version is 18.0.0.261 or lower, OR exactly 19.0.0.185, 19.0.0.207, 19.0.0.226, or 19.0.0.245, OR 11.2.202.548 or lower
  2. Identify installed Adobe Flash Player version on Mac
    Navigate to /Library/Application Support/Adobe/Flash Player and locate the version file, or check the Flash Player.plugin in /Library/Internet Plug-Ins/ by viewing Get Info
    Affected if The version matches the same ranges as Windows (18.0.0.261 or lower, specific 19.x versions, or 11.2.202.548 or lower)
  3. Identify installed Adobe AIR version
    Open Windows Control Panel > Programs and Features, or on Mac run 'airpkg -info' if AIR SDK is installed, or check /Library/Application Support/Adobe/AIR/ for version details
    Affected if The version is 19.0.0.241 or lower
  4. Check Adobe AIR SDK or AIR SDK Compiler version
    If using Adobe AIR SDK for development, check the version file in the SDK installation directory (typically version.xml or the SDK readme)
    Affected if The SDK version is 19.0.0.241 or lower
  5. Verify if Flash Player ActiveX control is in use (Internet Explorer)
    Open Internet Explorer, go to Manage Add-ons > Shockwave Flash Object, or check registry HKLM\SOFTWARE\Macromedia\FlashPlayerActiveX for the Version value
    Affected if The version listed matches any of the affected Flash Player ranges

You are affected if any installed Adobe Flash Player, Adobe AIR, Adobe AIR SDK, or Adobe AIR SDK Compiler version falls within the affected ranges: Flash Player <= 18.0.0.261, specific 19.x versions (185, 207, 226, 245), or <= 11.2.202.548; AIR or AIR SDK <= 19.0.0.241.

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 19.0.0.241
Vendor patch helpx.adobe.com →
Interim mitigation

Update Adobe Flash Player to version 18.0.0.268/20.0.0.228 or later, and Adobe AIR to 20.0.0.204 or later. For end-of-life Flash, migrate to HTML5 and remove legacy installations.

Recommended fix High confidence

Flash Player 18.0.0.268+ or 20.0.0.228+; Adobe AIR 20.0.0.204+

  1. Identify the installed Adobe Flash Player version by navigating to About Flash Player in the Help menu
  2. For Flash Player 18.x users: Download and install Flash Player 18.0.0.268 or later from adobe.com
  3. For Flash Player 19.x or 20.x users: Download and install Flash Player 20.0.0.228 or later from adobe.com
  4. For Adobe AIR users: Update to Adobe AIR version 20.0.0.204 or later
  5. For Adobe AIR SDK developers: Update to AIR SDK version 20.0.0.204 or later
  6. For Adobe AIR SDK & Compiler users: Update to version 20.0.0.204 or later
  7. Clear browser cache after updating to ensure the new version is loaded
  8. Verify the installed version matches the patched release
Caveat Adobe Flash Player reached end-of-life on December 31, 2020 - consider migrating away from Flash-based content; some legacy content may require testing after upgrade

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

Fix this in Air Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,800
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,880.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2015-8454 — 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-2015-8454 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