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Flash Player CVE-2020-9746

HIGH
NULL Pointer Dereference (CWE-476)
2020-10-14 psirt@adobe.com
8.8
CVSS 3.1 · NVD
View

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A10:2025 - Mishandling of Exceptional Conditions
ASVS 5.0
V16 - Security Logging and Error Handling Null pointer safety, defensive checks
MITRE ATT&CK

1 technique across 1 tactic: Impact

The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up.

Impact

CVSS score of 8.8 (HIGH). Attack characteristics: network attack vector, low complexity, no privileges required, user interaction required.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

A remote attacker could crash the application by dereferencing a null pointer by sending crafted requests to the affected application. No authentication is required to exploit this vulnerability.

This Week Schedule remediation this week. Why: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9).
No patch listed yet 4.4% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAI

Adobe Flash Player version 32.0.0.433 (and earlier) are affected by an exploitable NULL pointer dereference vulnerability that could result in a crash and arbitrary code execution. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.

RemediationAI

No vendor patch is available at time of analysis. Monitor vendor advisories for updates. Check pointers before dereferencing. Use static analysis tools to detect null pointer paths.

Affects your stack

Find out whether the stacks and servers you run are on an affected version.

Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.

Technical ContextAI · show details

This vulnerability is classified as NULL Pointer Dereference (CWE-476), which allows attackers to crash the application by dereferencing a null pointer. Adobe Flash Player version 32.0.0.433 (and earlier) are affected by an exploitable NULL pointer dereference vulnerability that could result in a crash and arbitrary code execution. Exploitation of this issue requires an attacker to insert malicious strings in an HTTP response that is by default delivered over TLS/SSL. Affected products include: Adobe Flash Player. Version information: version 32.0.0.433.

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  • Exploit and PoC references, threat intelligence from 22 sources

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Severity by source

NVD PRIMARY 8.8 HIGH
AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Primary rating from NVD · only source for this CVE.

CVSS VectorNVD

Attack Vector
Network
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
None
User Interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

DescriptionNVD

Adobe Flash Player version 32.0.0.433 (and earlier) are affected by an exploitable NULL pointer dereference vulnerability that could result in a crash and arbitrary code execution. Exploitation of this issue requires an attacker to insert malicious strings in an HTTP response that is by default delivered over TLS/SSL.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
4.4%
Top 10% exploitable
Data Quality
2 sources
Confidence: Low

How this decision was reached

The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.

SignalValue
Severity HIGH
CISA KEV No
Public POC No
EPSS 4.4%
Patch available No
Active threat No
Deciding rule
HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9)
What every action level means
Emergency Immediate action required. Criteria: CRITICAL + in CISA KEV (actively exploited) without patch, OR CRITICAL + EPSS > 30% without patch, OR CRITICAL + active threat signals without patch.
Act Now Prioritize within 24-48h. Criteria: in KEV with patch available, OR CRITICAL + public POC, OR HIGH + EPSS > 10%, OR CRITICAL + active threat, OR any CRITICAL severity.
This Week Schedule remediation this week. Criteria: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9). Patch within normal change window.
This Month Plan within 30 days. Criteria: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9), lower exploitation probability. Include in regular patch cycle.
Monitor Track and reassess. Criteria: LOW severity (CVSS 0.1-3.9), minimal exploitation risk. No immediate action needed.

SSVC AssessmentENISA

SSVC Decision· derived
Scheduled
Exploitation· derived
None
System Exposure· derived
Open
Automatable· derived
No
Human Impact· derived
Medium

Priority Score

48
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: +4
CVSS: +44
PoC: 0
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

A null pointer dereference occurs when a program attempts to access memory through a pointer that has been set to NULL (address 0x0).

Remote Code Execution represents the critical moment when an attacker successfully runs arbitrary code on a target system without physical access.

Denial of Service attacks render applications or systems unavailable by overwhelming resources or triggering failure conditions.

Affected Products (CPE)NVD

cpe:2.3:a:adobe:flash_player:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:adobe:flash_player:*:*:*:*:*:chrome:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:adobe:flash_player:*:*:*:*:*:edge:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:adobe:flash_player:*:*:*:*:*:internet_explorer_11:*:*
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CVE-2015-3043 CRITICAL POC
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Unspecified vulnerability in Adobe Flash Player before 11.3.300.271 on Windows and Mac OS X and before 11.2.202.238 on L

CVE-2014-0502 HIGH POC
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