CVE-2021-45055 Vulnerability Analysis & Exploit Details

CVE-2021-45055
Vulnerability Scoring

7.8
/10
Very High Risk

Highly exploitable, CVE-2021-45055 poses a critical security risk that could lead to severe breaches.

Attack Complexity Details

  • Attack Complexity: Low
    Exploits can be performed without significant complexity or special conditions.
  • Attack Vector: Local
    Vulnerability requires local system access.
  • Privileges Required: None
    No privileges are required for exploitation.
  • Scope: Unchanged
    Exploit remains within the originally vulnerable component.
  • User Interaction: Required
    User interaction is necessary for successful exploitation.

CVE-2021-45055 Details

Status: Modified

Last updated: 🕡 21 Nov 2024, 06:31 UTC
Originally published on: 🕘 13 Jan 2022, 21:15 UTC

Time between publication and last update: 1042 days

CVSS Release: version 3

CVSS3 Source

nvd@nist.gov

CVSS3 Type

Primary

CVSS3 Vector

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

CVE-2021-45055 Vulnerability Summary

CVE-2021-45055: Adobe InCopy version 16.4 (and earlier) is affected by an out-of-bounds read vulnerability when parsing a crafted file, which could result in a read past the end of an allocated memory structure. An attacker could leverage this vulnerability to execute code in the context of the current user. Exploitation of this issue requires user interaction in that a victim must open a malicious file.

Assessing the Risk of CVE-2021-45055

Access Complexity Graph

The exploitability of CVE-2021-45055 depends on two key factors: attack complexity (the level of effort required to execute an exploit) and privileges required (the access level an attacker needs).

Exploitability Analysis for CVE-2021-45055

With low attack complexity and no required privileges, CVE-2021-45055 is an easy target for cybercriminals. Organizations should prioritize immediate mitigation measures to prevent unauthorized access and data breaches.

Understanding AC and PR

A lower complexity and fewer privilege requirements make exploitation easier. Security teams should evaluate these aspects to determine the urgency of mitigation strategies, such as patch management and access control policies.

Attack Complexity (AC) measures the difficulty in executing an exploit. A high AC means that specific conditions must be met, making an attack more challenging, while a low AC means the vulnerability can be exploited with minimal effort.

Privileges Required (PR) determine the level of system access necessary for an attack. Vulnerabilities requiring no privileges are more accessible to attackers, whereas high privilege requirements limit exploitation to authorized users with elevated access.

CVSS Score Breakdown Chart

Above is the CVSS Sub-score Breakdown for CVE-2021-45055, illustrating how Base, Impact, and Exploitability factors combine to form the overall severity rating. A higher sub-score typically indicates a more severe or easier-to-exploit vulnerability.

CIA Impact Analysis

Below is the Impact Analysis for CVE-2021-45055, showing how Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability might be affected if the vulnerability is exploited. Higher values usually signal greater potential damage.

  • Confidentiality: High
    Exploiting CVE-2021-45055 can result in unauthorized access to sensitive data, severely compromising data privacy.
  • Integrity: High
    CVE-2021-45055 could allow unauthorized modifications to data, potentially affecting system reliability and trust.
  • Availability: High
    CVE-2021-45055 can disrupt system operations, potentially causing complete denial of service (DoS).

Exploit Prediction Scoring System (EPSS)

The EPSS score estimates the probability that this vulnerability will be exploited in the near future.

EPSS Score: 0.266% (probability of exploit)

EPSS Percentile: 67.19% (lower percentile = lower relative risk)
This vulnerability is less risky than approximately 32.81% of others.

CVE-2021-45055 References

External References

CWE Common Weakness Enumeration

CWE-125

CAPEC Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification

  • Overread Buffers CAPEC-540 An adversary attacks a target by providing input that causes an application to read beyond the boundary of a defined buffer. This typically occurs when a value influencing where to start or stop reading is set to reflect positions outside of the valid memory location of the buffer. This type of attack may result in exposure of sensitive information, a system crash, or arbitrary code execution.

Vulnerable Configurations

  • cpe:2.3:a:adobe:incopy:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    cpe:2.3:a:adobe:incopy:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
  • cpe:2.3:a:adobe:incopy:15.1.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    cpe:2.3:a:adobe:incopy:15.1.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
  • cpe:2.3:a:adobe:incopy:16.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    cpe:2.3:a:adobe:incopy:16.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
  • cpe:2.3:a:adobe:incopy:16.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    cpe:2.3:a:adobe:incopy:16.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
  • cpe:2.3:o:apple:macos:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    cpe:2.3:o:apple:macos:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
  • cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

Protect Your Infrastructure against CVE-2021-45055: Combat Critical CVE Threats

Stay updated with real-time CVE vulnerabilities and take action to secure your systems. Enhance your cybersecurity posture with the latest threat intelligence and mitigation techniques. Develop the skills necessary to defend against CVEs and secure critical infrastructures. Join the top cybersecurity professionals safeguarding today's infrastructures.

Other 5 Recently Published CVEs Vulnerabilities

  • CVE-2025-4098 – Horner Automation Cscape version 10.0 (10.0.415.2) SP1 is vulnerable to an out-of-bounds read vulnerability that could allow an attacker to disclos...
  • CVE-2025-30102 – Dell PowerScale OneFS, versions 9.4.0.0 through 9.10.1.0, contains an out-of-bounds write vulnerability. A local low privileged attacker could pote...
  • CVE-2025-30101 – Dell PowerScale OneFS, versions 9.8.0.0 through 9.10.1.0, contain a time-of-check time-of-use (TOCTOU) race condition vulnerability. An unauthentic...
  • CVE-2025-1948 – In Eclipse Jetty versions 12.0.0 to 12.0.16 included, an HTTP/2 client can specify a very large value for the HTTP/2 settings parameter SETTINGS_MA...
  • CVE-2024-13009 – In Eclipse Jetty versions 9.4.0 to 9.4.56 a buffer can be incorrectly released when confronted with a gzip error when inflating a request body. Thi...