CVE-2017-3014
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 Acrobat Reader versions 11.0.19 and earlier, 15.006.30280 and earlier, 15.023.20070 and earlier have an exploitable use after free vulnerability in XML Forms Architecture (XFA) related to reset form functionality. 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 confidenceAdobe Acrobat Reader contains a use-after-free vulnerability in the XML Forms Architecture (XFA) component specifically triggered during reset form functionality. The memory corruption allows an attacker to achieve arbitrary code execution by exploiting the freed memory after the reset operation.
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<= 11.0.19<= 15.006.30280<= 15.023.20070<= 15.006.30280<= 15.023.20070<= 11.0.19CVSS 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
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/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 the installed Adobe productOpen Adobe Acrobat Reader or Adobe Acrobat, then go to Help > About Adobe Acrobat Reader (or About Adobe Acrobat) to see the exact version number displayed in the splash screen or dialogAffected if The product name is Adobe Acrobat, Adobe Acrobat Reader, or Adobe Acrobat Reader DC, or Adobe Acrobat DC (the vulnerability affects all these product lines)
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Compare installed version against affected rangesNote the full version number from the About dialog (for example, 11.0.19, 15.006.30280, or 15.023.20070). Compare this version to the affected ranges: Acrobat/Reader 11.x versions at 11.0.19 or lower; Acrobat/Reader DC Classic channel at 15.006.30280 or lower; Acrobat/Reader DC Continuous channel at 15.023.20070 or lowerAffected if The installed version is 11.0.19 or lower for version 11.x, or 15.006.30280 or lower for Classic channel, or 15.023.20070 or lower for Continuous channel (any version at or below these thresholds)
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Verify XFA forms are in useOpen any PDF forms in the application and inspect whether they are XFA-based forms. In Adobe Acrobat Reader, go to File > Properties > Description, or check if the form uses dynamic XML-based form fields (XFA forms have distinct XML structure). Alternatively, open a PDF and look for XFA-specific elements in the document structureAffected if The vulnerability only affects PDFs containing XFA (XML Forms Architecture) forms, as the flaw is specifically in the XFA reset form functionality
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Check for reset form action usageExamine PDF forms for any reset form button or action. In Acrobat, use Tools > Forms > Edit to view form fields and buttons. Look for any button with a reset form action or JavaScript that calls resetForm()Affected if The use-after-free is triggered specifically during the reset form operation in XFA forms; forms that never use reset functionality are not exploitable though the vulnerable code is still present
The environment is affected if Adobe Acrobat Reader or Adobe Acrobat is installed at a version at or below 11.0.19 (version 11.x), 15.006.30280 (Classic channel), or 15.023.20070 (Continuous channel), AND the application processes XFA-based PDF forms that utilize reset form functionality.
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 Reader to a version newer than 11.0.19, 15.006.30280, or 15.023.20070 (depending on the product channel) to address the use-after-free vulnerability in XFA reset form handling.
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- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2017-3014 — 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-2017-3014 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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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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