CVE-2018-12772
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 and Reader 2018.011.20040 and earlier, 2017.011.30080 and earlier, and 2015.006.30418 and earlier versions have a Use-after-free vulnerability. Successful exploitation could lead to arbitrary code execution in the context of the current user.
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 · moderate confidenceUse-after-free vulnerability in Adobe Acrobat and Reader affecting versions 2018.011.20040 and earlier, 2017.011.30080 and earlier, and 2015.006.30418 and earlier. Successful exploitation allows arbitrary code execution in the context of the current user.
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>= 15.006.30060, <= 15.006.30418>= 15.008.20082, <= 18.011.20040>= 17.011.30059, <= 17.011.30080>= 15.006.30060, <= 15.006.30418>= 15.008.20082, <= 18.011.20040>= 17.011.30059, <= 17.011.30080CVSS 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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Verify Adobe Acrobat DC or Reader DC is installedCheck for the presence of Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader in the system. On Windows, look in Program Files or check Add/Remove Programs. On macOS, check /Applications folder for Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Reader.Affected if Adobe Acrobat DC or Adobe Acrobat Reader DC is present on the system
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Identify the installed version numberOpen the application, then go to Help > About Adobe Acrobat (or Reader). Alternatively, on Windows check the registry key: HKLM\SOFTWARE\Adobe\Adobe Acrobat\DC\InstallPath or look at the executable properties of AcroRd32.exe or Acrofx32.exe. The version format appears as XX.XXX.XXXXX (e.g., 18.011.20040).Affected if The displayed version matches the vulnerable ranges: 15.006.30060 to 15.006.30418, 15.008.20082 to 18.011.20040, or 17.011.30059 to 17.011.30080
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Confirm the update channel is ContinuousThis vulnerability affects the Continuous track versions (DC). Check if the installation is the Continuous track by looking at the version string containing 'DC' or checking if the application was installed via the DC installer. The Classic track versions use a different version numbering scheme.Affected if The installed product is Acrobat/Reader DC (Continuous track) and the version falls within the affected ranges
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Check if the application is actively usedReview recent file access timestamps or execution logs for the Acrobat/Reader executable to determine if the vulnerable software has been run recently.Affected if The vulnerable version is installed and the application has been executed by the current user
A user is affected if Adobe Acrobat DC or Reader DC Continuous track is installed with a version between 15.006.30060-15.006.30418, 15.008.20082-18.011.20040, or 17.011.30059-17.011.30080.
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 specified in Adobe security bulletins to address the use-after-free vulnerability.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,984.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-12772 — 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-2018-12772 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
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