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AcrobatApplication · Adobe

CVE-2018-4872

CRITICAL · 10.0 CVSS v3.0 Published 2018-02-27
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 18.009.20050 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

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 Reader 2018.009.20050 and earlier versions, 2017.011.30070 and earlier versions, 2015.006.30394 and earlier versions. This vulnerability is a security bypass vulnerability that leads to a sandbox escape. Specifically, the vulnerability exists in the way a cross call is handled.

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 confidence

A sandbox escape vulnerability in Adobe Acrobat Reader allows attackers to bypass security restrictions by exploiting improper handling of cross-call functionality between processes. This enables malicious code to escape the sandboxed environment and execute code with elevated privileges on the affected system.

MitigationUpdate Adobe Acrobat Reader to the latest patched version beyond 2018.009.20050, 2017.011.30070, or 2015.006.30394 respectively. Apply vendor security patches immediately given the critical (CVSS 10) severity.

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:>= 17.0, <= 17.011.30070
Acrobat DcApplication
Affected:>= -, <= 18.009.20050>= 15.0, <= 15.006.30394
Acrobat ReaderApplication
Affected:>= 17.0, <= 17.011.30070
Acrobat Reader DcApplication
Affected:>= -, <= 18.009.20050>= 15.0, <= 15.006.30394

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
None
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/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. Identify installed Adobe product
    Open Adobe Acrobat or Reader, then go to Help > About Adobe Acrobat Reader (or About Adobe Acrobat). The version number will appear in the dialog box.
    Affected if Any Adobe Acrobat or Reader version is installed (the vulnerability only affects specific version ranges)
  2. Compare version against affected ranges
    Note the exact version number displayed in the About dialog and compare it to these ranges: 17.0 to 17.011.30070, 15.0 to 15.006.30394, or versions 18.x up to and including 18.009.20050
    Affected if The installed version falls within any of these ranges: 17.0-17.011.30070, 15.0-15.006.30394, or 18.x through 18.009.20050
  3. Check for security update installation
    In Adobe Acrobat/Reader, go to Help > Check for Updates. Review the update history or open the installer log if available to see if version 2018.009.20050, 2017.011.30070, or 2015.006.30394 or later has been applied.
    Affected if The installed version is below these thresholds and no security patch has been applied
  4. Verify JavaScript is enabled (exploitation requires it)
    In Adobe Reader/Acrobat, go to Edit > Preferences > Security (or JavaScript) and check if Enable Adobe JavaScript is checked.
    Affected if JavaScript is enabled in the application settings

You are affected if Adobe Acrobat or Reader is installed and the version number is 17.0-17.011.30070, 15.0-15.006.30394, or 18.x through 18.009.20050, especially with JavaScript enabled.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 18.009.20050
Interim mitigation

Update Adobe Acrobat Reader to the latest patched version beyond 2018.009.20050, 2017.011.30070, or 2015.006.30394 respectively. Apply vendor security patches immediately given the critical (CVSS 10) severity.

Recommended fix High confidence

Adobe Acrobat Reader/Acrobat 2018 version 2018.011.20058 or later; Adobe Acrobat Reader/Acrobat 2017 version 2017.011.30102 or later; Adobe Acrobat Reader/Acrobat 2015 version 2015.006.30417 or later

  1. 1. Open Adobe Acrobat Reader or Adobe Acrobat application
  2. 2. Navigate to Help > Check for Updates (or use the Help menu)
  3. 3. Allow the application to check for available updates
  4. 4. If updates are available, download and install the latest security update
  5. 5. Alternatively, download the latest version from the official Adobe website (get.adobe.com/reader for Reader, get.adobe.com/acrobat for Acrobat)
  6. 6. Restart the application after updates are installed
  7. 7. Verify the version by going to Help > About Adobe Acrobat Reader (or About Adobe Acrobat)
Caveat Standard security update; no major functional changes expected for typical users

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Acrobat Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,800
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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-2018-4872 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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