CVE-2019-16463
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 · uneditedAdobe Acrobat and Reader versions , 2019.021.20056 and earlier, 2017.011.30152 and earlier, 2017.011.30155 and earlier version, 2017.011.30152 and earlier, and 2015.006.30505 and earlier have an untrusted pointer dereference vulnerability. Successful exploitation could lead to arbitrary code execution .
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 confidenceAdobe Acrobat and Reader contain an untrusted pointer dereference vulnerability that allows memory corruption, potentially enabling arbitrary code execution when a user opens a specially crafted PDF document.
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>= 15.006.30060, < 15.006.30508>= 15.008.20082, < 19.021.20058>= 17.011.30059, < 17.011.30156>= 15.006.30060, < 15.006.30508>= 15.008.20082, < 19.021.20058>= 17.011.30059, < 17.011.30156CVSS 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
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/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 Adobe Acrobat or Reader DC is installedOn Windows, check the installed programs list in Control Panel > Programs and Features, or use PowerShell: Get-ItemProperty 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\*' | Where-Object {$_.DisplayName -like '*Adobe*Acrobat*' -or $_.DisplayName -like '*Adobe*Reader*'}. On macOS, check /Applications for Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Reader apps.Affected if Adobe Acrobat DC or Adobe Acrobat Reader DC is present on the system
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Determine the exact installed version of Adobe Acrobat DCRight-click the Adobe Acrobat DC application shortcut, select Properties, and check the Details tab for the version number. Alternatively, open Adobe Acrobat DC, go to Help > About Adobe Acrobat DC to display the full version string.Affected if The version number is within any of these ranges: 15.006.30060 to 15.006.30507, 15.008.20082 to 19.021.20057, or 17.011.30059 to 17.011.30155
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Determine the exact installed version of Adobe Acrobat Reader DCRight-click the Adobe Acrobat Reader DC application shortcut, select Properties, and check the Details tab for the version number. Alternatively, open Adobe Acrobat Reader DC, go to Help > About Adobe Acrobat Reader DC to display the full version string.Affected if The version number is within any of these ranges: 15.006.30060 to 15.006.30507, 15.008.20082 to 19.021.20057, or 17.011.30059 to 17.011.30155
A system is affected if Adobe Acrobat DC or Adobe Acrobat Reader DC is installed and the version falls within 15.006.30060 to 15.006.30507, 15.008.20082 to 19.021.20057, or 17.011.30059 to 17.011.30155.
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.
dbcve · scoped15.006.3050817.011.3015619.021.20058
Update Adobe Acrobat and Reader to the latest patched versions as released by Adobe.
Adobe Acrobat Reader DC 2020.006.20034 (latest) or Acrobat DC 2020.006.20034; alternatively, version 19.021.20058 minimum for 2019 track, 17.011.30156 for 2017 track, 15.006.30508 for 2015 track
- Identify the currently installed Adobe Acrobat or Acrobat Reader version by opening the application, selecting 'Help' > 'About Adobe Acrobat Reader' or 'About Adobe Acrobat'
- Note the version number (e.g., 2019.021.20056)
- Determine which release track you are on: 2015.x (version 15.x), 2017.x (version 17.x), or 2019.x (version 19.x)
- Navigate to the Adobe Acrobat download page at https://get.adobe.com/reader/ or https://get.adobe.com/acrobat/
- Download the latest version of Adobe Acrobat Reader DC or Adobe Acrobat DC
- Close all instances of the application if open
- Run the installer and follow the prompts to complete the upgrade
- After installation, verify the new version by checking 'Help' > 'About' to confirm you have version 15.006.30508 (2015 track), 17.011.30156 (2017 track), or 19.021.20058 or later (2019 track)
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,168.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2019-16463 — 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-2019-16463 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
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data