Cyber Resilience

CVE-2015-2426

Memory Safety in Microsoft Windows Server 2008 r2

CISA KEVActive ExploitationEUVD ExploitedPublic PoCMemory Safety
Published
20 July 2015
Modified
22 April 2026
KEV Added
28 March 2022
Patch / advisory
View advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 8.8
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS Score 0.87 99.7th percentile
Risk Priority 90 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2015-2426 is a high-severity Improper Restriction of Operations within the Bounds of a Memory Buffer (CWE-119) vulnerability in Microsoft Windows Server 2008. Its CVSS base score is 8.8 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Process Injection (T1055); ranked in the top 0.3% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; CISA has added it to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog; a public proof-of-concept is referenced.

Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary

Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.

The vulnerability CVE-2015-2426 is a buffer underflow in atmfd.dll within the Windows Adobe Type Manager Library, affecting Microsoft Windows Vista SP2, Windows Server 2008 SP2 and R2 SP1, Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2012 Gold and R2, and Windows RT Gold and 8.1. It is triggered by a crafted OpenType font and is also known as the OpenType Font Driver Vulnerability. This issue is classified under CWE-119 and CWE-124 with a CVSS score of 8.8.

Remote attackers can exploit the flaw by delivering a malicious OpenType font to a target system, potentially achieving arbitrary code execution. The attack vector is network-based and requires user interaction, such as rendering the font in an affected application.

Microsoft addressed the issue in security bulletin MS15-078. Additional analysis from sources like Trend Micro links the vulnerability to disclosures from the Hacking Team leak, highlighting its potential use in targeted attacks.

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

Buffer underflow in atmfd.dll in the Windows Adobe Type Manager Library in Microsoft Windows Vista SP2, Windows Server 2008 SP2 and R2 SP1, Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2012 Gold and R2, and Windows RT Gold…

more

and 8.1 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted OpenType font, aka "OpenType Font Driver Vulnerability."

CWE(s)
CWE-119CWE-124
KEV Date Added
28 March 2022

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1055 Process Injection Stealth
Adversaries may inject code into processes in order to evade process-based defenses as well as possibly elevate privileges.
attack.mitre.org →
T1068 Exploitation for Privilege Escalation Privilege Escalation
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in an attempt to elevate privileges.
attack.mitre.org →
T1190 Exploit Public-Facing Application Initial Access
Adversaries may attempt to exploit a weakness in an Internet-facing host or system to initially access a network.
attack.mitre.org →
T1203 Exploitation for Client Execution Execution
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in client applications to execute code.
attack.mitre.org →
T1210 Exploitation of Remote Services Lateral Movement
Adversaries may exploit remote services to gain unauthorized access to internal systems once inside of a network.
attack.mitre.org →
T1212 Exploitation for Credential Access Credential Access
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in an attempt to collect credentials.
attack.mitre.org →
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2015-2546Same product: Microsoft Windows 7both on KEV
CVE-2014-6332Same product: Microsoft Windows 7both on KEV
CVE-2015-2360Same product: Microsoft Windows 7both on KEV
CVE-2013-3660Same product: Microsoft Windows 7both on KEV
CVE-2017-0022Same product: Microsoft Windows 7both on KEV
CVE-2015-2387Same product: Microsoft Windows 7both on KEV
CVE-2017-0101Same product: Microsoft Windows 7both on KEV
CVE-2014-1776Same product: Microsoft Windows 7both on KEV
CVE-2013-3918Same product: Microsoft Windows 7both on KEV
CVE-2014-0322Same product: Microsoft Windows 7both on KEV

Affected Assets

microsoft
windows 10
all versions
microsoft
windows 7
all versions
microsoft
windows 8
all versions
microsoft
windows 8.1
all versions
microsoft
windows rt
all versions
microsoft
windows rt 8.1
all versions
microsoft
windows server 2008
all versions, r2
microsoft
windows server 2012
all versions, r2
microsoft
windows vista
all versions

Mitigating Controls

Control response

Prevent
Stop it (NIST 800-53)

—

Detect
Catch it (NIST detect / respond)

—

Harden
Shrink the surface (DISA STIG)

—

Validate
Prove the fix (OWASP ASVS)
  • V17.3.2
  • V1.4.1

Likely Mitigating Controls AI

Per-CVE control mapping for this CVE has not run yet; the list below is derived from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry.

SA-11 Developer Testing and Evaluation
addresses: CWE-119

Ongoing control assessments and code testing (static/dynamic analysis, fuzzing) surface memory buffer restriction failures, which are then remediated before release.

SC-27 Platform-independent Applications
addresses: CWE-119

Managed runtimes used by platform-independent applications (e.g., JVM, CLR) enforce memory safety, preventing most buffer overflows that require direct memory manipulation.

SI-16 Memory Protection
addresses: CWE-119

Memory protections (e.g., W^X, ASLR) make exploitation of buffer-boundary violations far harder to turn into code execution.

SI-4 System Monitoring
addresses: CWE-119

Detects exploitation attempts that produce memory corruption, crashes, or anomalous behavior.

Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

PR.PS-06 mostly match
prevents

Secure SDLC practices (bounds checking, safe APIs, reviews) directly prevent this class of flaw.

ID.RA-01 partial match
prevents

Vulnerability scanning and code analysis directly surface buffer-boundary flaws.

ID.RA-08 partial match
prevents

Receiving and triaging vulnerability disclosures commonly includes buffer-related reports.

PR.AT-02 partial match
prevents

Developer training on secure coding reduces introduction of memory-buffer errors.

PR.PS-02 partial match
prevents

Patching replaces vulnerable code containing buffer-boundary defects.

Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

A.8.29 Security testing in development and acceptance mostly match
finds

Security testing in development catches out-of-bounds accesses before release, covering most instances of the weakness.

A.8.25 Secure development life cycle partial match
prevents

Secure development lifecycle mandates memory-safety practices that directly prevent buffer-boundary violations.

A.8.26 Application security requirements partial match
prevents

Application security requirements can specify memory-safety rules, but do not prescribe implementation details.

A.8.27 Secure system architecture and engineering principles partial match
prevents

Secure architecture and engineering principles include memory-safe design patterns that mitigate buffer overflows.

A.8.28 Secure coding partial match
prevents

Secure coding standards explicitly forbid unsafe buffer operations, directly eliminating CWE-119.

References