CVE-2018-17688
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 PhantomPDF 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 setItems method of a ComboBox. 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-7069.
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 vulnerability in Foxit PhantomPDF 9.2.0.9297's ComboBox setItems method allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a malicious PDF file. The flaw stems from the lack of validation of object existence before performing operations on it, leading to dangling pointer dereference.
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 installed Foxit productOpen Foxit Reader or PhantomPDF, then go to Help > About Foxit Reader (or About PhantomPDF). The version number is displayed in the dialog box.Affected if The product is Foxitsoftware Reader or PhantomPDF with version 9.2.0.9297 or lower
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Confirm exact version numberCheck the full version string in the About dialog. Compare it to the affected range: any version <= 9.2.0.9297 is vulnerable.Affected if Version is 9.2.0.9297 or any earlier 9.x version
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Verify PDF form functionality is enabledIn Foxit, go to Home > Form or check if the application can open and render PDF forms with interactive fields. The ComboBox form field type must be available.Affected if PDF form rendering and interactive field support is enabled (default state)
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Check for suspicious PDF filesExamine recently opened PDF files for embedded JavaScript or unusual form field definitions, especially files from untrusted sources that contain ComboBox form fields.Affected if A malicious PDF with specially crafted ComboBox setItems method has been opened
You are affected if you have Foxit Reader or PhantomPDF version 9.2.0.9297 or earlier installed and have opened or may open untrusted PDF files with interactive ComboBox form fields.
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 PhantomPDF to the latest version that includes the security patch for this vulnerability. Avoid opening untrusted PDF files or visiting suspicious webpages until the update is applied.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing3.0 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 $2,800.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-17688 — 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-2018-17688 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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