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AcrobatApplication · Adobe

CVE-2017-16394

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.0 Published 2017-12-09
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 17.012.20098 or later.
See remediation →
95/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges

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
An 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 occurs as a result of a computation that reads data that is past the end of the target buffer; the computation is a part of the WebCapture module. The use of an invalid (out-of-range) pointer offset during access of internal data structure fields causes the vulnerability. A successful attack can lead to sensitive data exposure.

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

Out-of-bounds read vulnerability in Adobe Acrobat and Reader's WebCapture module. The vulnerability stems from computation that accesses data using an invalid (out-of-range) pointer offset, reading past the end of the target buffer. Successful exploitation allows attackers to read sensitive data from memory.

MitigationUpdate Adobe Acrobat and Reader to the latest patched versions that address this vulnerability. Organizations should apply vendor security patches as part of regular patch management processes.

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:<= 11.0.22>= 17.0, <= 17.011.30066
Acrobat DcApplication
Affected:>= -, <= 17.012.20098>= 15.0, <= 15.006.30355
Acrobat ReaderApplication
Affected:<= 11.0.22>= 17.0, <= 17.011.30066
Acrobat Reader DcApplication
Affected:>= -, <= 17.012.20098>= 15.0, <= 15.006.30355

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
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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify the installed Adobe product
    Check if Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader is installed, and whether it is the Classic or DC variant. Look at the product name in the application menu or Add/Remove Programs.
    Affected if The product is Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader (Classic or DC variants)
  2. Determine the installed version number
    In the application, go to Help > About Adobe Acrobat/Reader, or check the version in the application properties. Alternatively, check the file version of the main executable (AcroRd32.exe for Reader or Acrobat.exe for Acrobat) in Program Files.
    Affected if The version falls within the affected ranges: Classic versions <= 11.0.22 or >= 17.0 through 17.011.30066; DC versions >= 15.0 through 15.006.30355 or <= 17.012.20098
  3. Locate the WebCapture module
    Search for the WebCapture related DLL or module files in the Adobe installation directory, typically under Program Files/Adobe/Acrobat or Reader/version/Acrobat. Look for files with 'WebCapture' in the name.
    Affected if The WebCapture module files exist in the installation directory
  4. Confirm vulnerability applicability
    Since the vulnerability is in the WebCapture module, determine if this module is loaded or can be invoked. The module is part of standard Acrobat/Reader installations and processes web capture requests.
    Affected if The product is an affected version AND the WebCapture module is present

A user is affected if they have Adobe Acrobat or Reader installed with a version number matching the affected ranges and the WebCapture module is present in the installation.

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.

From vendor data
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 17.012.20098
Interim mitigation

Update Adobe Acrobat and Reader to the latest patched versions that address this vulnerability. Organizations should apply vendor security patches as part of regular patch management processes.

Fix this in Acrobat Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
6.0 hours of engineering $1,040
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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-2017-16394 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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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