CVE-2020-9601
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 2020.006.20042 and earlier, 2017.011.30166 and earlier, 2017.011.30166 and earlier, and 2015.006.30518 and earlier have an out-of-bounds read vulnerability. Successful exploitation could lead to information disclosure.
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 confidenceAdobe Acrobat and Reader contain an out-of-bounds read vulnerability where the software reads memory beyond allocated buffer boundaries. Successful exploitation could allow an attacker to read sensitive information from memory, potentially including credentials, session tokens, or other application data.
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, < 15.006.30518>= 15.008.20082, < 20.006.20042>= 17.011.30059, < 17.011.30166>= 15.006.30060, < 15.006.30518>= 15.008.20082, < 20.006.20042>= 17.011.30059, < 17.011.30166CVSS 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
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
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 Adobe Acrobat or Reader is installedOn Windows, open Programs and Features or check C:\Program Files\Adobe\Acrobat DC or C:\Program Files (x86)\Adobe\Acrobat DC. On macOS, check /Applications for Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader.Affected if Either Adobe Acrobat DC or Adobe Acrobat Reader DC is present on the system
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Locate the installed version numberIn Adobe Acrobat/Reader, go to Help > About Adobe Acrobat Reader (or About Adobe Acrobat). The version number displays in the format XX.XXXX.XXXXXX (for example, 20.006.20042).Affected if The displayed version falls within any of the affected ranges: 15.006.30060 to 15.006.30517, 15.008.20082 to 20.006.20041, or 17.011.30059 to 17.011.30165
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Confirm version using command line (Windows)Run: wmic product where "name like 'Adobe Acrobat%' or name like 'Adobe Reader%'" get name,version. Or right-click the executable in Program Files and view Properties > Details for the File Version.Affected if The version returned matches any of the affected version ranges listed above
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Identify the update channel build number (if needed for precision)In the About dialog, note the full build number including the third segment (for example, 20.006.20042). The second and third segments (006 and 20042) determine the exact patch level within the major version.Affected if The build number is lower than 15.006.30518, lower than 20.006.20042, or lower than 17.011.30166 for the respective major version branches
The system is affected if Adobe Acrobat DC or Adobe Acrobat Reader DC is installed with a version number that falls within any of the three vulnerable ranges: 15.006.30060 through 15.006.30517, 15.008.20082 through 20.006.20041, or 17.011.30059 through 17.011.30165.
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 data15.006.3051817.011.3016620.006.20042
Update Adobe Acrobat and Reader to the latest patched versions released by Adobe to address this vulnerability.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation3.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-9601 — 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-2020-9601 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