AcrobatApplication · Adobe

CVE-2009-4324

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2009-12-15

Fix available

A fix is available. Upgrade to 8.2 / 9.3 or later.

See remediation →

97/100

Remediation priority · Urgent

In the wild High EPSS Public exploit No privileges

Official description

NVD · unedited

Use-after-free vulnerability in the Doc.media.newPlayer method in Multimedia.api in Adobe Reader and Acrobat 9.x before 9.3, and 8.x before 8.2 on Windows and Mac OS X, allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted PDF file using ZLib compressed streams, as exploited in the wild in December 2009.

Technical summary

dbcve analysis · high confidence

A use-after-free vulnerability in the Doc.media.newPlayer method within Multimedia.api allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted PDF file containing ZLib compressed streams. The vulnerability affects Adobe Reader and Acrobat versions 9.x before 9.3 and 8.x before 8.2 on Windows and Mac OS X.

MitigationUpdate Adobe Reader and Acrobat to version 9.3 or later (or 8.2+ for the 8.x branch) to remediate this vulnerability. Deploy the update through enterprise patch management or manual installation.

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

Affected products & versions

NVD · CPE data

AcrobatApplication

Affected:>= 8.0, < 8.2>= 9.0, < 9.3

Acrobat ReaderApplication

Affected:>= 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

From the vector

Attack vector: Local
Complexity: Low
Privileges: None
User interaction: Required
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: High
Integrity: High
Availability: High

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

Am I affected?

dbcve checks

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

Check installed Adobe Reader version

On Windows, open Adobe Reader, go to Help > About Adobe Reader. On Linux, run: rpm -q adbeacrobatreader or dpkg -l | grep acroread

Affected if Version is 8.0 through 8.1.x, or 9.0 through 9.2.x (falls within >= 8.0, < 8.2 or >= 9.0, < 9.3)
Check installed Adobe Acrobat version

On Windows, open Adobe Acrobat, go to Help > About Adobe Acrobat. On Linux, run: rpm -q adobeacrobat or check the installation directory for the version file

Affected if Version is 8.0 through 8.1.x, or 9.0 through 9.2.x (falls within >= 8.0, < 8.2 or >= 9.0, < 9.3)
Locate the Multimedia.api plugin file

On Windows, search for Multimedia.api in the Adobe Reader/Acrobat plugins folder (typically C:\Program Files\Adobe\Reader\Version\plug_ins\). On Linux, search with: find /usr -name 'Multimedia.api' 2>/dev/null

Affected if Multimedia.api file exists in the plugins directory (vulnerable component is present)
Check if multimedia plugin is enabled

On Windows, open Adobe Reader, go to Edit > Preferences > Security (or Trust Manager) and check Plugin settings. On Linux, check the plugins.cache file or examine the installation manifest

Affected if Multimedia.api is loaded or enabled (the vulnerability requires this plugin to be active)
Verify Suse Linux package versions (if applicable)

On Suse systems, run: rpm -qa | grep -i acroread or rpm -qa | grep -i adobe for installed packages, then check exact versions against affected Suse versions (11, 11.1, 11.2, 10.0)

Affected if Package version matches Suse 11, 11.1, 11.2, or 10.0 with unpatched Adobe packages installed

You are affected if Adobe Reader or Acrobat version is 8.0-8.1.x or 9.0-9.2.x AND the Multimedia.api plugin exists and is enabled on your system.

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

Remediation

dbcve · scoped

Upgrade available Upgrade to 8.2 / 9.3 or later

Fixed in 8.29.3

Interim mitigation

Update Adobe Reader and Acrobat to version 9.3 or later (or 8.2+ for the 8.x branch) to remediate this vulnerability. Deploy the update through enterprise patch management or manual installation.

Recommended fix High confidence

Adobe Acrobat/Reader 8.2 or later, or 9.3 or later (latest releases recommended)

Upgrade Adobe Acrobat from any version >= 8.0 and < 8.2 to version 8.2 or later (preferably latest 8.x release)
Upgrade Adobe Acrobat from any version >= 9.0 and < 9.3 to version 9.3 or later (preferably latest 9.x release)
Upgrade Adobe Reader from any version >= 8.0 and < 8.2 to version 8.2 or later
Upgrade Adobe Reader from any version >= 9.0 and < 9.3 to version 9.3 or later
For Linux Enterprise and Opensuse systems, apply vendor-supplied security updates via the system's package manager (e.g., zypper update or yum update)

Caveat Minor - Adobe updates are typically backward compatible with standard PDF files; some legacy features in Multimedia.api may have been modified

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

Fix this in Acrobat Exploited in the wild — priority engagement

Consultation1.0 h
Implementation2.0 h
Testing1.0 h
Review / QA1.0 h

5.0 hours of engineering $890

Get it fixed fast

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,424.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally

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References

Primary sources

contagiodump.blogspot.comProof of Concept
blogs.adobe.comBroken LinkVendor Advisory
secunia.comBroken LinkVendor Advisory
secunia.comBroken LinkVendor Advisory
secunia.comBroken LinkVendor Advisory
www.adobe.comVendor Advisory
www.vupen.comBroken LinkVendor Advisory
contagiodump.blogspot.comExploitThird Party Advisory
lists.opensuse.orgMailing ListThird Party Advisory
www.kb.cert.orgThird Party AdvisoryUS Government Resource
www.securityfocus.comBroken LinkThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry
www.us-cert.govThird Party AdvisoryUS Government Resource
exchange.xforce.ibmcloud.comThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry
bugzilla.redhat.comIssue Tracking
osvdb.orgBroken Link
www.adobe.comNot Applicable
www.metasploit.comBroken Link
www.redhat.comBroken Link
www.shadowserver.orgBroken Link
www.symantec.comBroken Link
www.vupen.comBroken Link
oval.cisecurity.orgBroken Link
www.cisa.govUS Government Resource
nvd.nist.govNVD record

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2009-4324 in production — separate from our analysis above.

Notes0 Guidelines

Know something about CVE-2009-4324?

The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.

The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
A config change or rule that shut the vector down
A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon

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

At a glance

Exploited in the wildOn CISA’s known-exploited list · agencies must fix by 2022-06-22

A fix existsUpgrade to 8.2 / 9.3 or later

Severity 7.8 High

Exploit likelihood EPSS, next 30 days 81.9%

Affects: Acrobat

Remediation

Being exploited — close it fast

Fix this in Acrobat 5 hrs · Low

Typical engagement from $890

Get it fixed fast See the full breakdown ↓

This CVE is on CISA’s actively-exploited list, so the clock is real — a vetted specialist can deliver a reviewed fix for your staging environment quickly.

You’ll deal with our team directly and deploy the reviewed fix to staging first — never straight to production.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Check your environment

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.

Scan for this in your stack

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

Practitioner notes

No notes yet

Official description

Technical summary

Affected products & versions

CVSS breakdown

Am I affected?

Remediation

References