Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
Adobe Animate 21.0.9 and earlier can be compromised if a user opens a malicious BMP image. Successful exploitation could let the attacker run code as that user, potentially exposing files or enabling further system compromise.
Executive priority
Treat as high priority for teams using Adobe Animate, especially creative or marketing workstations. The business risk is user-driven compromise through malicious files, not broad internet-facing exposure.
Technical view
CVE-2021-42271 is a CWE-787 out-of-bounds write in Adobe Animate BMP parsing. The CVSS 3.0 score is 7.8, with local attack vector, low complexity, no privileges required, required user interaction, unchanged scope, and high confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely on workstations that have Adobe Animate 21.0.9 or earlier installed and receive or open untrusted BMP files. It is not described as a remotely reachable service issue.
Exploitation context
Exploitation requires user interaction: a victim must open a malicious BMP file. The provided sources do not show CISA KEV listing or active exploitation evidence, so active exploitation should not be assumed.
Researcher notes
Evidence supports memory corruption in BMP parsing leading to code execution as the current user. The provided bundle does not include exploit details, fixed version details, or real-world exploitation evidence beyond the Adobe advisory reference.
Mitigation direction
- Update Adobe Animate according to Adobe APSB21-105 guidance.
- Identify and remove unsupported or unnecessary Adobe Animate installations.
- Restrict opening BMP files from untrusted external sources.
- Use endpoint protections to inspect suspicious attachments and downloads.
- Apply least privilege for users running creative tooling.
Validation and detection
- Inventory endpoints for Adobe Animate installations and versions.
- Flag Adobe Animate 21.0.9 and earlier for remediation.
- Confirm Adobe APSB21-105 updates are applied where Animate remains installed.
- Review file-association and attachment-handling controls for BMP files.
- Check endpoint telemetry for suspicious Animate process behavior.
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-787: 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 lookupExecution behavior lookup
The CVE wording references code or command execution, so execution technique review may help defensive triage. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2021-42271 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
- High
- CVSS
- 7.8 (3.0)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
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:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H1.85.9Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.0 score
7.8HighVector: CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/animate/apsb21-105.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 Write
Out-of-bounds Write represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.