CVE-2018-7406
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 · uneditedAn issue was discovered in Foxit Reader before 9.1 and PhantomPDF before 9.1. This vulnerability allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code. 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 u3d images inside of a pdf. The issue results from the lack of proper validation of user-supplied data, which can result in an array indexing issue. An attacker can leverage this to execute code in the context of the current process.
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 confidenceArray indexing vulnerability in U3D (3D) image parsing within Foxit Reader and PhantomPDF. The lack of proper validation of user-supplied data during U3D image processing allows remote code execution. User interaction is required - opening a malicious PDF or visiting a malicious page that embeds a malicious PDF.
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<= 9.0.1.1049<= 9.0.1.1049CVSS 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 Foxit product and versionOpen Foxit Reader or PhantomPDF, then go to Help > About to view the exact version number. Alternatively, right-click the application icon, select Properties, and check the File Version under the Details tab.Affected if The installed version is 9.0.1.1049 or lower for either Reader or PhantomPDF.
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Verify U3D parsing support is presentCheck if the Foxit installation includes U3D (3D PDF) capability by attempting to open a PDF with embedded 3D content, or look for U3D-related DLL files in the installation directory (such as u3d*.dll).Affected if U3D/3D support is present in the installation, enabling the vulnerable parsing code path.
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Confirm vulnerability trigger conditionThe vulnerability is triggered when processing a PDF file containing a malicious U3D object. The user must open such a file for exploitation to occur.Affected if Users in the environment open PDF files from untrusted sources that may contain U3D-based malicious content.
You are affected if your Foxit Reader or PhantomPDF version is 9.0.1.1049 or earlier AND the U3D/3D parsing feature is enabled, as the vulnerability exists in the U3D image processing component.
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 dataUpgrade to Foxit Reader 9.1 or PhantomPDF 9.1 or later to patch the vulnerability. Avoid opening untrusted or unexpected PDF files from unverified sources.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-7406 — 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-2018-7406 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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