CVE-2019-13327
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 affected installations of Foxit Reader 9.5.0.20723. 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 processing of fields within Acroform objects. 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-8888.
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 confidenceFoxit Reader 9.5.0.20723 contains a use-after-free or null pointer dereference vulnerability in Acroform field processing. The application fails to validate object existence before performing operations, allowing remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via malicious PDF files through user interaction.
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<= 9.6.0.25114CVSS 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
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/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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Confirm Foxit Reader is installedCheck the system for Foxit Reader installation by looking in standard installation directories (typically Program Files or Program Files (x86)) or use system utilities like 'Get-ItemProperty' on registry keys under HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall or WMIC product listAffected if Foxit Reader is present on the system
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Identify installed Foxit Reader versionRight-click the Foxit Reader executable (foxitreader.exe) in the installation folder, select Properties, and view the Version tab. Alternatively, open Foxit Reader and go to Help > About Foxit Reader to display the exact version numberAffected if Unable to determine version or version cannot be verified
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Compare version against affected rangeCompare your installed version number to the affected range: any version less than or equal to 9.6.0.25114 is vulnerable. Note that version 9.5.0.20723 is specifically listed as vulnerable in the CVEAffected if Installed version is 9.6.0.25114 or lower (any version <= 9.6.0.25114)
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Check for Acroform field usageThe vulnerability affects Acroform field processing. Open any PDF file that contains AcroForm fields (forms with fillable fields) and verify Foxit Reader processes these fields. This can be confirmed by opening a PDF with form fields in Foxit ReaderAffected if Acroform fields are present in PDFs opened with Foxit Reader and the application attempts to process them
If Foxit Reader is installed with a version number less than or equal to 9.6.0.25114 and processes PDF files containing AcroForm fields, the environment is affected by this 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; avoid opening untrusted PDF files or visiting malicious web pages until patched.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2019-13327 — 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-2019-13327 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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