CVE-2016-4262
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 · uneditedAdobe Digital Editions before 4.5.2 allows attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (memory corruption) via unspecified vectors, a different vulnerability than CVE-2016-4256, CVE-2016-4257, CVE-2016-4258, CVE-2016-4259, CVE-2016-4260, and CVE-2016-4261.
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 · moderate confidenceThis is a memory corruption vulnerability in Adobe Digital Editions versions prior to 4.5.2 that allows remote attackers to achieve arbitrary code execution or cause a denial of service. The vulnerability stems from unspecified vectors that corrupt memory, enabling attackers to potentially take complete control of the affected system.
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<= 4.5.1CVSS 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
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/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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Locate Adobe Digital Editions installationSearch for the file 'Adobe Digital Editions.exe' in typical installation paths such as C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe Digital Editions or C:\Program Files (x86)\Adobe\Adobe Digital Editions. Also check the user's AppData\Local\Programs folder.Affected if The executable is found on the system, indicating the software is installed.
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Retrieve installed version via executable propertiesRight-click the Adobe Digital Editions.exe file, select Properties, and view the Details tab for the Product Version field. Alternatively, right-click the executable and choose Properties to see the File version.Affected if The version displayed is 4.5.1 or lower (e.g., 4.5.0, 4.0, 3.0).
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Check version via Windows registryOpen Registry Editor (regedit) and navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\Adobe Digital Editions or HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Adobe\DigitalEditions. Look for a DisplayVersion or Version string value.Affected if The registry shows a version string that is 4.5.1 or below.
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Use command line to confirm versionOpen Command Prompt and run: dir "C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe Digital Editions\Adobe Digital Editions.exe" /s or use PowerShell: Get-ChildItem -Path "C:\Program Files","C:\Program Files (x86)" -Recurse -Filter "Adobe Digital Editions.exe" | Select-Object FullName, VersionInfo.Affected if The command returns an executable with version information showing 4.5.1 or earlier.
If Adobe Digital Editions is installed and its version is 4.5.1 or any version lower than 4.5.2, the system is affected by this vulnerability.
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.
dbcve · scopedUpgrade Adobe Digital Editions to version 4.5.2 or later to remediate this vulnerability. Organizations should deploy the updated version across all endpoints and consider blocking or monitoring the application if upgrading is not immediately feasible.
Adobe Digital Editions 4.5.2
- Close Adobe Digital Editions if it is currently running
- Navigate to the official Adobe website to download Adobe Digital Editions 4.5.2
- Uninstall the current version of Adobe Digital Editions (4.5.1 or earlier)
- Install the downloaded version 4.5.2
- Restart the application and verify the version number shows 4.5.2
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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 locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2016-4262 — 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-2016-4262 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
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data