CVE-2018-17647
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 · uneditedThis vulnerability allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code on vulnerable installations of Foxit Reader 9.2.0.9297. User interaction is required to exploit this vulnerability in that the target must visit a malicious page or open a malicious file. The specific flaw exists within the handling of the boundItem method of a TimeField. The issue results from the lack of validating the existence of an object prior to performing operations on the object. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to execute code in the context of the current process. Was ZDI-CAN-6484.
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 confidenceA use-after-free/null pointer dereference vulnerability in Foxit Reader 9.2.0.9297 allows remote code execution via the boundItem method of TimeField objects. The flaw stems from the lack of validating object existence before performing operations on it, enabling an attacker to execute arbitrary code in the context of the current process via a malicious PDF file or webpage.
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<= 9.2.0.9297<= 9.2.0.9297CVSS 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 if Foxit Reader or PhantomPDF is installedCheck installed programs on Windows via Control Panel > Programs and Features, or run: wmic product where "name like 'Foxit%'" get name,versionAffected if Either Foxit Reader or PhantomPDF appears in the installed programs list
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Determine the exact version of installed Foxit productRight-click the Foxit executable (typically in C:\Program Files\Foxit Software\Foxit Reader\ or C:\Program Files\Foxit Software\PhantomPDF\), select Properties, then view the Details tab for Product Version; or open the application and go to Help > AboutAffected if The displayed version number is 9.2.0.9297 or lower
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Compare version against affected rangeParse the version number found and compare numerically against 9.2.0.9297Affected if The installed version is less than or equal to 9.2.0.9297 (any version from 9.0.0.0 through 9.2.0.9297)
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Verify the TimeField boundItem component is presentThis is an internal PDF form component; the vulnerability triggers when opening a maliciously crafted PDF that uses the TimeField form object with the boundItem method - no separate config check needed, the presence of Foxit Reader/PhantomPDF at affected version is sufficientAffected if The vulnerable application version is confirmed and the software can process PDF forms containing TimeField objects
You are affected if Foxit Reader or PhantomPDF is installed with any version up to and including 9.2.0.9297, as this version contains the unpatched TimeField boundItem vulnerability.
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 Foxit Reader to the latest version containing the vendor patch. Avoid opening PDF files from untrusted sources until the update is applied.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-17647 — 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-2018-17647 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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- 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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