Cyber Resilience

CVE-2015-3043

Memory Safety in Adobe Flash Player ≤ 11.2.202.457

CISA KEVActive ExploitationEUVD ExploitedPublic PoCMemory Safety
Published
14 April 2015
Modified
21 April 2026
KEV Added
03 March 2022
Patch / advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 9.8
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS Score 0.74 99.4th percentile
Risk Priority 97 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2015-3043 is a critical-severity Out-of-bounds Write (CWE-787) vulnerability in Adobe Flash Player. Its CVSS base score is 9.8 (Critical).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploitation for Privilege Escalation (T1068); ranked in the top 0.6% 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.

Adobe Flash Player versions before 13.0.0.281, 14.x through 17.x before 17.0.0.169 on Windows and OS X, and before 11.2.202.457 on Linux are affected by a memory corruption vulnerability tracked as CVE-2015-3043. The flaw, assigned CWE-787, permits arbitrary code execution or denial of service through unspecified vectors and carries a CVSS 3.1 base score of 9.8. It is distinct from multiple other Flash vulnerabilities disclosed around the same period.

Remote attackers can exploit the issue without authentication or user interaction beyond loading crafted content, enabling full system compromise or service disruption. The vulnerability was actively exploited in the wild during April 2015.

Security advisories from OpenSUSE and Red Hat direct administrators to apply vendor-supplied updates that address the flaw in affected Flash Player releases. These updates are distributed through standard package management channels for the respective Linux distributions.

The issue saw confirmed real-world exploitation shortly after disclosure, underscoring the urgency of patching internet-facing systems that still run the vulnerable plugin.

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

Adobe Flash Player before 13.0.0.281 and 14.x through 17.x before 17.0.0.169 on Windows and OS X and before 11.2.202.457 on Linux allows attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (memory corruption) via unspecified vectors, as exploited…

more

in the wild in April 2015, a different vulnerability than CVE-2015-0347, CVE-2015-0350, CVE-2015-0352, CVE-2015-0353, CVE-2015-0354, CVE-2015-0355, CVE-2015-0360, CVE-2015-3038, CVE-2015-3041, and CVE-2015-3042.

CWE(s)
KEV Date Added
03 March 2022

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1068 Exploitation for Privilege Escalation Privilege Escalation
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in an attempt to elevate privileges.
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.
T1203 Exploitation for Client Execution Execution
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in client applications to execute code.
T1210 Exploitation of Remote Services Lateral Movement
Adversaries may exploit remote services to gain unauthorized access to internal systems once inside of a network.
T1211 Exploitation for Stealth Stealth
Adversaries may exploit vulnerabilities to evade detection by hiding activity, suppressing logging, or operating within trusted or unmonitored components.
T1212 Exploitation for Credential Access Credential Access
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in an attempt to collect credentials.
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2013-0640Same product: Apple Mac Os Xboth on KEV
CVE-2015-3113Same product: Adobe Flash Playerboth on KEV
CVE-2016-5198Same product: Linux Linux Kernelboth on KEV
CVE-2010-1297Same product: Adobe Flash Playerboth on KEV
CVE-2018-5002Same product: Adobe Flash Playerboth on KEV
CVE-2012-0754Same product: Adobe Flash Playerboth on KEV
CVE-2009-3953Same product: Apple Mac Os Xboth on KEV
CVE-2011-2462Same product: Apple Mac Os Xboth on KEV
CVE-2010-2883Same product: Microsoft Windowsboth on KEV
CVE-2023-26369Same product: Microsoft Windowsboth on KEV

Affected Assets

adobe
flash player
≤ 11.2.202.457 · ≤ 13.0.0.281 · 14.0.0.125 — 17.0.0.169
novell
suse linux enterprise desktop
11.0, 12.0
novell
suse linux enterprise workstation extension
12.0
opensuse
evergreen
11.4
opensuse
opensuse
13.1, 13.2
redhat
enterprise linux desktop
5.0, 6.0
redhat
enterprise linux eus
6.6
redhat
enterprise linux server
5.0, 6.0
redhat
enterprise linux server aus
6.6
redhat
enterprise linux server from rhui
5.0, 6.0
+1 more product configuration(s) — see NVD for full list

Mitigating Controls

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.

addresses: CWE-787

Out-of-bounds writes that corrupt control flow or inject shellcode are rendered non-executable by the same memory protections.

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-development practices (static analysis, bounds checking, code review) are the primary means of preventing out-of-bounds writes.

ID.RA-01 partial match
prevents

Vulnerability scanning and recording can discover out-of-bounds write flaws so they can be remediated.

PR.PS-02 partial match
prevents

Patching or replacing vulnerable software directly eliminates known instances of this coding weakness.

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.

finds

Security testing in development and acceptance can detect and prevent out-of-bounds write defects.

prevents

Secure development life cycle mandates practices that prevent out-of-bounds writes.

prevents

Application security requirements can specify bounds-checking and safe memory handling.

prevents

Secure architecture and engineering principles reduce the likelihood of buffer overflows.

prevents

Secure coding directly addresses out-of-bounds writes through language choice and coding standards.

prevents

Change management can enforce review gates that catch unsafe memory operations before deployment.

References