📄 Description (English)
Adobe Acrobat and Reader Double Free Vulnerability — Adobe Acrobat and Reader have a double free vulnerability that could lead to remote code execution.
🤖 AI Executive Summary
CVE-2018-4990 is a critical double free vulnerability in Adobe Acrobat and Reader that allows remote code execution. This vulnerability has been actively exploited in the wild and was notably used in combination with a Windows kernel vulnerability (CVE-2018-8120) as part of a sophisticated attack chain. With a CVSS score of 9.0 and public exploits available, this represents an immediate threat to any organization using unpatched Adobe PDF software. The vulnerability can be triggered by opening a specially crafted PDF document, making it highly effective in spear-phishing campaigns.
📄 Description (Arabic)
🤖 AI Intelligence Analysis Analyzed: Apr 11, 2026 04:48
🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia Impact Assessment
This vulnerability poses significant risk to Saudi organizations across all sectors due to the ubiquitous use of Adobe Acrobat/Reader for document processing. Government agencies (NCA-regulated entities) and banking institutions (SAMA-regulated) are particularly at risk given their heavy reliance on PDF documents for official communications and financial reports. Energy sector organizations including ARAMCO and its contractors, telecom operators like STC, and healthcare institutions are also vulnerable. The availability of weaponized exploits combined with the prevalence of spear-phishing campaigns targeting Saudi organizations — particularly from APT groups active in the Middle East — makes this an elevated threat in the Saudi context.
🏢 Affected Saudi Sectors
Government
Banking
Energy
Telecom
Healthcare
Education
Defense
Retail
⚖️ Saudi Risk Score (AI)
9.2
/ 10.0
🔧 Remediation Steps (English)
Immediate Actions:
1. Update Adobe Acrobat and Reader to the latest patched versions immediately (patches released in May 2018 APSB18-09)
2. Enable Protected View in Adobe Acrobat/Reader to sandbox PDF rendering
3. Disable JavaScript execution in Adobe Reader via Edit > Preferences > JavaScript
Detection and Monitoring:
4. Deploy YARA rules to detect malicious PDFs exploiting double-free conditions
5. Monitor for suspicious child processes spawned by AcroRd32.exe or Acrobat.exe
6. Implement email gateway rules to sandbox PDF attachments before delivery
Compensating Controls:
7. Use alternative PDF readers (e.g., browser-based viewers) for untrusted documents
8. Implement application whitelisting to prevent unauthorized code execution
9. Deploy endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions with exploit prevention capabilities
10. Restrict PDF file downloads and email attachments through DLP policies
🔧 خطوات المعالجة (العربية)
الإجراءات الفورية:
1. تحديث Adobe Acrobat وReader إلى أحدث الإصدارات المصححة فوراً (التصحيحات صدرت في مايو 2018 APSB18-09)
2. تفعيل وضع العرض المحمي في Adobe Acrobat/Reader لعزل عرض ملفات PDF
3. تعطيل تنفيذ JavaScript في Adobe Reader عبر تحرير > التفضيلات > JavaScript
الكشف والمراقبة:
4. نشر قواعد YARA للكشف عن ملفات PDF الخبيثة التي تستغل ثغرات Double Free
5. مراقبة العمليات الفرعية المشبوهة التي تنشأ من AcroRd32.exe أو Acrobat.exe
6. تطبيق قواعد بوابة البريد الإلكتروني لفحص مرفقات PDF في بيئة معزولة قبل التسليم
الضوابط التعويضية:
7. استخدام قارئات PDF بديلة للمستندات غير الموثوقة
8. تطبيق القوائم البيضاء للتطبيقات لمنع تنفيذ التعليمات البرمجية غير المصرح بها
9. نشر حلول كشف واستجابة نقاط النهاية مع إمكانيات منع الاستغلال
10. تقييد تنزيل ملفات PDF ومرفقات البريد الإلكتروني من خلال سياسات منع فقدان البيانات
📋 Regulatory Compliance Mapping
🟢 NCA ECC 2024
2-3-1 (Patch Management)
2-5-1 (Malware Protection)
2-6-1 (Email Security)
2-2-1 (Asset Management)
2-9-1 (Vulnerability Management)
🔵 SAMA CSF
3.3.3 (Patch Management)
3.3.5 (Malware Protection)
3.3.7 (Email and Web Security)
3.4.1 (Vulnerability Management)
3.3.4 (Endpoint Security)
🟡 ISO 27001:2022
A.8.8 (Management of technical vulnerabilities)
A.8.7 (Protection against malware)
A.8.23 (Web filtering)
A.8.28 (Secure coding)
🟣 PCI DSS v4.0
6.3.3 (Patching security vulnerabilities)
5.2 (Anti-malware mechanisms)
11.3 (Penetration testing)
6.2 (Security patches)
🔗 References & Sources 0
No references.
📦 Affected Products / CPE 1 entries
Adobe:Acrobat and Reader