Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
Adobe Animate 21.0.5 and earlier can leak limited sensitive information if a user opens a maliciously crafted file. This is not a self-spreading server flaw; it depends on social engineering or unsafe file handling on systems where Animate is installed.
Executive priority
Handle through normal patch governance unless Animate is widely deployed or users frequently receive external project files. Prioritize exposed creative teams because successful exploitation could disclose user-context information, but current evidence does not support emergency response.
Technical view
CVE-2021-28573 is a CWE-125 out-of-bounds read in Adobe Animate file parsing. The CVSS 3.1 score is 4.3, with low confidentiality impact and no integrity or availability impact. Exploitation requires user interaction and runs in the current user context.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely on creative, marketing, training, or development workstations running Adobe Animate 21.0.5 or earlier. Systems without Animate installed are not indicated as affected by the provided sources.
Exploitation context
The source bundle does not show CISA KEV listing or active exploitation evidence. An unauthenticated attacker would need to convince a victim to open a malicious file, making phishing and untrusted file exchange the main risk paths.
Researcher notes
Evidence is limited to the CVE record and Adobe advisory reference. The issue is parser-triggered, user-interaction dependent, and confidentiality-only per CVSS. Avoid assuming broader Adobe product exposure, exploit availability, or specific fixed versions beyond vendor guidance.
Mitigation direction
- Identify Adobe Animate installations and versions across managed endpoints.
- Update Adobe Animate according to Adobe APSB21-35 guidance.
- Limit opening of Animate-related files from untrusted sources.
- Remove Adobe Animate from systems where it is not business-required.
- Use endpoint and email controls to reduce malicious attachment delivery.
Validation and detection
- Confirm no managed endpoint runs Adobe Animate 21.0.5 or earlier.
- Check software inventory against Adobe APSB21-35 affected-version guidance.
- Review endpoint detections for suspicious files opened with Animate.
- Verify user-facing controls warn against unexpected creative project files.
- Confirm remediation evidence is retained in vulnerability management records.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CWE-125: Exact CWE lookup
Use the exact CWE identifier as the starting point before reviewing related ATT&CK behavior. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2021-28573 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- Medium
- CVSS
- 4.3 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
CVSS vector scores
1 official scoreWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N2.81.4Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
4.3MediumVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/animate/apsb21-35.htmlCVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.
Out-of-bounds Read
Out-of-bounds Read represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.