CVE-2020-17417
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 10.0.1.35811. 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 the Annotation 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-11657.
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 confidenceThis is a use-after-free or null pointer dereference vulnerability in Foxit Reader 10.0.1.35811's Annotation object handling. The application fails to validate object existence before performing operations on it, allowing an attacker who tricks a user into opening a malicious PDF to execute arbitrary code in the context of the current process.
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<= 10.0.1.35811<= 10.0.1.35811CVSS 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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Check if Foxit Reader is installedLocate Foxit Reader executable (typically in Program Files or Program Files (x86) folder) or check Start Menu for Foxit Reader entryAffected if Foxit Reader executable exists on the system
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Determine installed Foxit Reader versionRight-click the Foxit Reader executable, select Properties, and check the Details tab for the Product Version field; alternatively, open Foxit Reader and go to Help > About Foxit ReaderAffected if Version number displayed is 10.0.1.35811 or lower (any version up to and including 10.0.1.35811)
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Check for Foxit PhantomPDF installationLook for Foxit PhantomPDF in Program Files/Program Files (x86) or check installed programs list; verify version similarly via Properties > Details or Help > AboutAffected if PhantomPDF is installed with version 10.0.1.35811 or lower
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Confirm application handles PDF filesVerify the system has PDF file associations configured for Foxit Reader, or confirm the user routinely opens PDF files using Foxit ReaderAffected if PDF files are opened with Foxit Reader or PhantomPDF (the vulnerability triggers when a malicious PDF is opened)
A user is affected if Foxit Reader or PhantomPDF version 10.0.1.35811 or lower is installed and the application is used to open PDF files, since the vulnerability exploits malformed Annotation objects in maliciously crafted PDFs.
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 dataDeploy the vendor patch or upgrade Foxit Reader to the latest version. Users should avoid opening untrusted PDF files and disable JavaScript execution in Foxit Reader settings as a defense-in-depth measure.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing1.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-17417 — 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-2020-17417 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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