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AcrobatApplication · Adobe

CVE-2017-16420

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 in the part of the JavaScript engine that handles annotation abstraction. 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

This is an out-of-bounds read vulnerability in Adobe Acrobat and Reader's JavaScript engine, specifically in the annotation abstraction handling code. The vulnerability stems from the use of an invalid (out-of-range) pointer offset when accessing internal data structure fields, causing the engine to read data past the end of the target buffer. Successful exploitation can lead to sensitive data exposure.

MitigationApply the available security updates from Adobe for Acrobat and Reader to the specified affected versions (or later patched versions). Prioritize systems that process untrusted PDF files.

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. Verify Adobe Acrobat or Reader is installed
    Check for Adobe Acrobat or Reader installation by looking in Program Files (Windows) or Applications folder (macOS), or query the Windows Registry under HKLM\SOFTWARE\Adobe\Adobe Acrobat or HKLM\SOFTWARE\Adobe\Adobe Reader
    Affected if Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Reader software is present on the system
  2. Determine the exact installed version
    Open Adobe Acrobat or Reader, then go to Help > About Adobe Acrobat (or Reader) to display the exact version number. On Windows, you can also check the registry key: HKLM\SOFTWARE\Adobe\Adobe Acrobat\[version]\InstallPath or HKLM\SOFTWARE\Adobe\Adobe Reader\[version]\InstallPath
    Affected if The displayed version falls within the affected ranges: Acrobat/Reader 11.0.22 or earlier; versions 17.0 through 17.011.30066; Acrobat Dc versions through 17.012.20098; Acrobat Reader DC versions through 15.006.30355 or 15.0 through 15.006.30355
  3. Confirm the JavaScript engine feature is enabled
    In Adobe Acrobat or Reader, go to Edit > Preferences > JavaScript and verify if 'Enable Adobe JavaScript' is checked. This feature must be enabled for the vulnerable code path to be reachable when processing malicious PDF files
    Affected if JavaScript is enabled in the application preferences, as the vulnerability resides in the JavaScript engine's annotation handling code
  4. Inspect PDF processing behavior if possible
    If you have access to PDF files that may contain annotation-related JavaScript, monitor application behavior when opening them. Look for unexpected crashes or error messages related to annotation handling. Check Windows Event Viewer for application crash events fromAcroRd32.exe or Acrobat.exe
    Affected if The application exhibits out-of-bounds read behavior (crashes, errors) when processing PDFs with annotation JavaScript, indicating potential exploitation of this vulnerability

The environment is affected if Adobe Acrobat or Reader is installed with a version matching the affected ranges AND JavaScript processing is enabled, allowing the vulnerable annotation handling code path to be triggered by malicious PDF files.

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

Apply the available security updates from Adobe for Acrobat and Reader to the specified affected versions (or later patched versions). Prioritize systems that process untrusted PDF files.

Fix this in Acrobat Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation3.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,750
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Scan for this in your stack

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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-2017-16420 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