CVE-2017-16390
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 is an instance of a use after free vulnerability in the JavaScript engine API. The mismatch between an old and a new object can provide an attacker with unintended memory access -- potentially leading to code corruption, control-flow hijack, or an information leak attack. Successful exploitation could lead to arbitrary code execution.
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 confidenceUse after free vulnerability in the Adobe Acrobat and Reader JavaScript engine API allows attackers to access freed memory, potentially leading to code corruption, control-flow hijack, information leaks, and arbitrary code execution. The vulnerability stems from a mismatch between old and new objects during JavaScript API operations.
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:3.0/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 installed Adobe productOpen Windows Control Panel > Programs and Features, or run 'wmic product get name,version' on Windows. On macOS, check /Applications folder for Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Reader. Look for product name (Acrobat/Acrobat Reader, and whether it is 'Dc' variant).Affected if The product is Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader (or their Dc variants)
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Determine installed version numberRight-click on the Adobe application in Programs and Features and select Properties, or launch the application and go to Help > About Adobe [Product]. Note the full version number (for example: 11.0.22, 17.011.30066, 15.006.30355).Affected if Version cannot be determined or does not match the installed product naming convention
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Compare version against affected rangesFor standard Acrobat/Reader: check if version is <= 11.0.22 OR (>= 17.0 AND <= 17.011.30066). For Acrobat Dc/Reader Dc: check if (>= 15.0 AND <= 15.006.30355) OR (<= 17.012.20098).Affected if Installed version falls within any of these ranges: <= 11.0.22, 17.0 to 17.011.30066, 15.0 to 15.006.30355, or <= 17.012.20098 (for Dc variants)
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Verify JavaScript API is accessibleIn Adobe Acrobat/Reader, go to Edit > Preferences > JavaScript. Confirm the 'Enable Adobe JavaScript' checkbox is checked. Alternatively, check registry key HKLM\SOFTWARE\Adobe\ProductName\Version\FeatureLockdown\bEnableJS (value 1 means enabled).Affected if JavaScript is enabled in the application preferences or registry
User is affected if Adobe Acrobat or Reader (including Dc variants) is installed with a version matching the affected ranges AND JavaScript is enabled in the application settings.
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 as released by Adobe. In enterprise environments, deploy patches through patch management systems and verify complete coverage across all affected installations.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $5,120.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2017-16390 — 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-2017-16390 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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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.
- 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