CVE-2016-4065
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 · uneditedThe ConvertToPDF plugin in Foxit Reader and PhantomPDF before 7.3.4 on Windows, when the gflags app is enabled, allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (out-of-bounds read and application crash) via a crafted (1) JPEG, (2) GIF, or (3) BMP image.
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 confidenceOut-of-bounds read vulnerability in the ConvertToPDF plugin of Foxit Reader and PhantomPDF (before version 7.3.4) on Windows. When the Windows gflags debugging tool is enabled, processing a specially crafted JPEG, GIF, or BMP image triggers the vulnerability, leading to application crash (denial of service).
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<= 7.3.0.118<= 7.3.0.118CVSS 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
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check Foxit Reader versionOpen Foxit Reader, go to Help > About Foxit Reader, or right-click the executable and view Properties > Details to see the version numberAffected if Version is 7.3.0.118 or lower (any version up to and including 7.3.0.118)
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Check PhantomPDF versionOpen PhantomPDF, go to Help > About PhantomPDF, or right-click the executable and view Properties > Details to see the version numberAffected if Version is 7.3.0.118 or lower (any version up to and including 7.3.0.118)
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Verify gflags application debugging is enabledRun the Windows gflags.exe tool (part of Debugging Tools for Windows) and check if Application Debugging is enabled for the foxitreader.exe or phantompdf.exe process, or check the registry key HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Image File Execution Options\{exename}\GlobalFlagAffected if gflags has application debugging enabled for the Foxit executable
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Confirm ConvertToPDF plugin is presentIn Foxit Reader or PhantomPDF, go to File > Convert > To PDF, or check the plugins folder (typically in the installation directory under /plugins) for ConvertToPDF plugin filesAffected if ConvertToPDF plugin is installed and loaded
You are affected if you have Foxit Reader or PhantomPDF version 7.3.0.118 or lower AND gflags application debugging is enabled AND the ConvertToPDF plugin is in use with a crafted image file
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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.
From vendor dataUpgrade Foxit Reader or PhantomPDF to version 7.3.4 or later. As a compensating control, ensure gflags application debugging is disabled unless required for legitimate debugging purposes.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing1.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2016-4065 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2016-4065 in production — separate from our analysis above.
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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- 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
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