CVE-2020-10902
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 PhantomPDF 9.7.1.29511. 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 U3D objects in PDF files. The issue results from the lack of proper validation of user-supplied data, which can result in a read past the end of an allocated structure. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to execute code in the context of the current process. Was ZDI-CAN-10462.
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 confidenceThis is a memory corruption vulnerability in Foxit PhantomPDF's U3D (Universal 3D) object parser. The lack of proper bounds checking during U3D object handling allows a specially crafted PDF to read past the end of an allocated buffer, leading to arbitrary code execution in the context of the current user process. Exploitation requires the victim to open a malicious PDF file.
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<= 9.7.1.29511<= 9.7.1.29511CVSS 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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Identify installed Foxit product and versionOpen Foxit PhantomPDF or Reader, then go to Help > About Foxit PhantomPDF (or Reader) to view the exact version number displayed in the dialog. Alternatively, check Add/Remove Programs (Windows) or the application's installation properties.Affected if The displayed version is 9.7.1.29511 or earlier (any version <= 9.7.1.29511).
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Confirm product is PhantomPDF or ReaderNote which Foxit product is installed - this vulnerability affects both PhantomPDF and Reader in the same version range. Check the application name in the title bar or About dialog.Affected if The product is Foxit PhantomPDF or Foxit Reader.
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Verify U3D support is presentThis vulnerability exploits the U3D (Universal 3D) object parser. Determine if U3D support is available in the installation by opening a PDF containing a 3D object, or check the application's plugin/converters list for U3D-related components.Affected if U3D parsing functionality exists in the installed version (required for exploitation - the vulnerability cannot be triggered without U3D object handling).
If the installed Foxit PhantomPDF or Reader version is 9.7.1.29511 or earlier AND the application has U3D functionality present, the environment is vulnerable to CVE-2020-10902.
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 dataApply the vendor security patch from Foxit to update PhantomPDF to a version beyond 9.7.1.29511, and enforce user awareness to avoid opening untrusted PDF files from unknown sources.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-10902 — 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-2020-10902 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
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