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Actively exploited in the wild. This CVE is on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities list — treat remediation as urgent. Federal remediation due by 22 Jun 2022.
AcrobatApplication · Adobe

CVE-2009-3953

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2010-01-13
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 7.1.4 / 8.2 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
In the wild High EPSS Public exploit Remotely reachable No privileges Patch available

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
The U3D implementation in Adobe Reader and Acrobat 9.x before 9.3, 8.x before 8.2 on Windows and Mac OS X, and 7.x before 7.1.4 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via malformed U3D data in a PDF document, related to a CLODProgressiveMeshDeclaration "array boundary issue," a different vulnerability than CVE-2009-2994.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

A buffer overflow vulnerability exists in the U3D (Universal 3D) rendering engine of Adobe Reader and Acrobat. By embedding malformed U3D data in a specially crafted PDF file, specifically related to a CLODProgressiveMeshDeclaration array boundary issue, an attacker can trigger memory corruption and achieve arbitrary code execution with the privileges of the user viewing the PDF.

MitigationUpdate Adobe Reader and Acrobat to version 9.3 or later for 9.x versions, 8.2 or later for 8.x versions, and 7.1.4 or later for 7.x versions. Alternatively, disable U3D rendering in Adobe settings or use mitigation tools that block malicious PDF files.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
AcrobatApplication
Affected:>= 7.0, < 7.1.4>= 8.0, < 8.2>= 9.0, < 9.3
Linux Enterprise DebuginfoApplication
Affected:= 11
OpensuseOperating system
Affected:= 11.1= 11.2
Linux EnterpriseOperating system
Affected:= 10.0

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

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

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify if Adobe Reader or Acrobat is installed
    On Windows, check Add/Remove Programs or the registry for Adobe Reader/Acrobat entries. On Mac, check /Applications for Adobe applications.
    Affected if Neither Adobe Reader nor Adobe Acrobat is installed, then the system is not affected by this specific vulnerability.
  2. Determine the installed Adobe product version
    Open Adobe Reader or Acrobat, then go to Help > About Adobe Reader/Acrobat to display the exact version number. Alternatively, check the file version of the executable (AcroRd32.exe for Reader or Acrobat.exe for Acrobat) in the installation directory.
    Affected if The displayed version must be compared against the affected ranges.
  3. Compare your version against the affected ranges
    The affected version ranges are: Adobe Acrobat/Reader 7.0 through 7.1.3 (versions >= 7.0 and < 7.1.4); version 8.0 through 8.1.x (versions >= 8.0 and < 8.2); and version 9.0 through 9.2.x (versions >= 9.0 and < 9.3). If your installed version falls within any of these ranges, your installation is potentially affected.
    Affected if Your installed version falls within any of these three ranges: 7.0 to 7.1.3, 8.0 to 8.1.x, or 9.0 to 9.2.x.
  4. Verify whether U3D rendering is enabled
    In Adobe Reader or Acrobat, check the Preferences (Edit > Preferences > 3D and Multimedia) to see if U3D rendering is enabled. On Windows, also examine the plugin folder (typically C:\Program Files\Adobe\Reader\Reader\plug_ins) for the u3d.fl plugin file which handles U3D content.
    Affected if U3D rendering must be enabled and the u3d.fl plugin must be present for the vulnerability to be exploitable.

You are affected if Adobe Reader or Acrobat is installed, the version falls within 7.0-7.1.3, 8.0-8.1.x, or 9.0-9.2.x, and U3D rendering is enabled.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 7.1.4 / 8.2 / 9.3 or later
Fixed in 7.1.48.29.3
Vendor patch www.adobe.com →
Interim mitigation

Update Adobe Reader and Acrobat to version 9.3 or later for 9.x versions, 8.2 or later for 8.x versions, and 7.1.4 or later for 7.x versions. Alternatively, disable U3D rendering in Adobe settings or use mitigation tools that block malicious PDF files.

Recommended fix High confidence

Adobe Acrobat 7.1.4, 8.2, or 9.3 (or Reader 7.1.4, 8.2, or 9.3)

  1. 1. Identify the currently installed Adobe Reader or Acrobat version by checking 'Help' > 'About Adobe Reader/Acrobat'
  2. 2. Determine which major version branch you are using (7.x, 8.x, or 9.x)
  3. 3. For Adobe Acrobat 7.x users: Download and install Adobe Acrobat 7.1.4 or later from the Adobe website
  4. 4. For Adobe Acrobat 8.x users: Download and install Adobe Acrobat 8.2 or later from the Adobe website
  5. 5. For Adobe Acrobat 9.x users: Download and install Adobe Acrobat 9.3 or later from the Adobe website
  6. 6. For Adobe Reader users: Download and install the corresponding Adobe Reader version (7.1.4, 8.2, or 9.3) from the Adobe website
  7. 7. Verify the installation was successful by checking the version again
  8. 8. For Linux Enterprise/OpenSUSE systems: Apply vendor security updates via the system package manager (e.g., zypper update or apt-get update && apt-get upgrade)
Caveat Legacy Acrobat 7.x is very old; ensure compatibility with existing workflows before upgrading. Some features may behave differently in newer versions.

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Acrobat Exploited in the wild — priority engagement
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
18.0 hours of engineering $3,200
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Scan for this in your stack

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2009-3953 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data