dbcve.org
AcrobatApplication · Adobe

CVE-2014-8454

HIGH · 10.0 CVSS v2.0 Published 2014-12-10
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

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
Use-after-free vulnerability in Adobe Reader and Acrobat 10.x before 10.1.13 and 11.x before 11.0.10 on Windows and OS X allows attackers to execute arbitrary code via unspecified vectors, a different vulnerability than CVE-2014-8455 and CVE-2014-9165.

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

Use-after-free vulnerability in Adobe Reader and Acrobat 10.x before 10.1.13 and 11.x before 11.0.10 on Windows and OS X allows attackers to execute arbitrary code via unspecified vectors. The flaw occurs when the application continues using a pointer to memory after it has been freed, enabling memory corruption and code execution.

MitigationUpdate Adobe Reader and Acrobat to version 10.1.13 or later for 10.x, and 11.0.10 or later for 11.x. Prioritize patching given the CVSS 10 severity and critical nature of arbitrary code execution.

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:= 10.0= 10.0.1= 10.0.2= 10.0.3= 10.1= 10.1.1= 10.1.2= 10.1.3= 10.1.4= 10.1.5= 10.1.6= 10.1.7
Mac Os XOperating system
Affected:all versions
WindowsOperating system
Affected:all versions
Acrobat ReaderApplication
Affected:= 10.0= 10.0.1= 10.0.2= 10.0.3= 10.1= 10.1.1= 10.1.2= 10.1.3= 10.1.4= 10.1.5= 10.1.6= 10.1.7

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
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Complete
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete

AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C

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. Check Adobe Acrobat version on Windows
    Open Adobe Acrobat, go to Help > About Adobe Acrobat. Alternatively, right-click the Acrobat.exe file in the installation directory (typically C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe Acrobat X\) and select Properties to view the File Version.
    Affected if Version starts with 10.0, 10.0.1, 10.1, 10.1.1, 10.1.2, 10.1.3, 10.1.4, 10.1.5, 10.1.6, or 10.1.7, or is 11.x before 11.0.10
  2. Check Adobe Reader version on Windows
    Open Adobe Reader, go to Help > About Adobe Reader. Alternatively, right-click the AcroRd32.exe file in the installation directory and select Properties to view the File Version.
    Affected if Version starts with 10.0, 10.0.1, 10.1, 10.1.1, 10.1.2, 10.1.3, 10.1.4, 10.1.5, 10.1.6, or 10.1.7, or is 11.x before 11.0.10
  3. Check Adobe Acrobat version on macOS
    Open Adobe Acrobat, click the Acrobat menu > About Adobe Acrobat. Alternatively, navigate to /Applications/Adobe Acrobat X/ or similar, right-click the Adobe Acrobat.app, select Get Info, and view the Version information.
    Affected if Version starts with 10.0, 10.0.1, 10.1, 10.1.1, 10.1.2, 10.1.3, 10.1.4, 10.1.5, 10.1.6, or 10.1.7, or is 11.x before 11.0.10
  4. Check Adobe Reader version on macOS
    Open Adobe Reader, click the Reader menu > About Adobe Reader. Alternatively, navigate to /Applications/Adobe Reader X/ or similar, right-click the Adobe Reader.app, select Get Info, and view the Version information.
    Affected if Version starts with 10.0, 10.0.1, 10.1, 10.1.1, 10.1.2, 10.1.3, 10.1.4, 10.1.5, 10.1.6, or 10.1.7, or is 11.x before 11.0.10

If the installed Adobe Acrobat or Reader version is 10.0 through 10.1.7, or 11.x before 11.0.10, on Windows or macOS, the environment is affected by this use-after-free vulnerability.

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
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Update Adobe Reader and Acrobat to version 10.1.13 or later for 10.x, and 11.0.10 or later for 11.x. Prioritize patching given the CVSS 10 severity and critical nature of arbitrary code execution.

Recommended fix High confidence

Adobe Acrobat/Reader 10.1.13 (for 10.x) or 11.0.10 (for 11.x) or later

  1. Navigate to the Adobe Acrobat/Reader download page or use the Adobe Update utility
  2. Download Adobe Acrobat/Reader version 10.1.13 or later for 10.x versions
  3. Download Adobe Acrobat/Reader version 11.0.10 or later for 11.x versions
  4. Run the installer and follow the on-screen prompts to complete the upgrade
  5. Restart the system after installation to ensure all components are updated
  6. Verify the installed version matches the fixed release (10.1.13 or 11.0.10 or later)
Caveat Standard security update with no expected breaking changes; ensure you backup any custom settings if needed

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

Fix this in Acrobat Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,600
Get help mitigating

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,560.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2014-8454 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

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-2014-8454 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

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