CVE-2017-16368
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 · uneditedAn issue was discovered in Adobe Acrobat and Reader: 2017.012.20098 and earlier versions, 2017.011.30066 and earlier versions, 2015.006.30355 and earlier versions, and 11.0.22 and earlier versions. This vulnerability leads to a stack-based buffer overflow condition in the internal Unicode string manipulation module. It is triggered by an invalid PDF file, where a crafted Unicode string causes an out of bounds memory access of a stack allocated buffer, due to improper checks when manipulating an offset of a pointer to the buffer. Attackers can exploit the vulnerability and achieve arbitrary code execution if they can effectively control the accessible memory.
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 confidenceStack-based buffer overflow vulnerability in Adobe Acrobat and Reader's internal Unicode string manipulation module. The flaw occurs due to improper bounds checking when manipulating offsets to a stack-allocated buffer, allowing a malicious PDF with crafted Unicode strings to trigger out-of-bounds memory access and achieve 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<= 11.0.22>= 17.0, <= 17.011.30066>= -, <= 17.012.20098>= 15.0, <= 15.006.30355<= 11.0.22>= 17.0, <= 17.011.30066>= -, <= 17.012.20098>= 15.0, <= 15.006.30355CVSS 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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify Adobe Acrobat or Reader installationCheck system for Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader installation. On Windows, examine Start Menu programs list or check Registry keys under HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\App Paths\Acrobat.exe or AcroRd32.exeAffected if Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader is installed
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Determine installed product versionOpen Adobe Acrobat or Reader, then navigate to Help > About Adobe Acrobat (or Reader) to display the exact version number. Alternatively, right-click the executable in Program Files and select Properties > Details to view the File VersionAffected if Version falls within any of these affected ranges: Acrobat/Reader <= 11.0.22; version 17.0 through 17.011.30066; version 15.0 through 15.006.30355; version 17.0 through 17.012.20098 (Acrobat Dc/Reader Dc)
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Confirm vulnerable Unicode string handling is presentThe vulnerability exists in the internal Unicode string manipulation module. This module is part of the core PDF processing functionality and is always loaded when opening PDFs with Unicode content. No specific feature toggle can disable this componentAffected if The product is a vulnerable version and processes PDF documents containing Unicode strings
A user is affected if Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader is installed with a version number matching the affected ranges: <= 11.0.22, 17.0-17.011.30066, 15.0-15.006.30355, or 17.0-17.012.20098 for Dc variants
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 dataUpdate Adobe Acrobat and Reader to the latest patched versions beyond 2017.012.20098, 2017.011.30066, 2015.006.30355, and 11.0.22. Additional controls include disabling JavaScript in PDF readers and employing endpoint protection.
- Consultation6.0 h
- Implementation12.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2017-16368 — 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-2017-16368 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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