CVE-2020-9712
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 2020.009.20074 and earlier, 2020.001.30002, 2017.011.30171 and earlier, and 2015.006.30523 and earlier have a security bypass vulnerability. Successful exploitation could lead to security feature bypass.
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 a security bypass vulnerability in multiple older versions. Successful exploitation allows attackers to circumvent security controls. The specific mechanism and affected security feature are not detailed in available documentation.
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, <= 15.006.30523>= 15.008.20082, <= 20.009.20074>= 17.011.30059, <= 17.011.30171= 20.001.30002>= 15.006.30060, <= 15.006.30523>= 15.008.20082, <= 20.009.20074>= 17.011.30059, <= 17.011.30171= 20.001.30002CVSS 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
- None
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:H/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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Identify installed Adobe productOpen Adobe Acrobat or Reader, then go to Help > About Adobe Acrobat (or Reader) to view the exact version number. Alternatively, on Windows check the registry key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Adobe\Adobe Acrobat\DC\Version (or \Reader\DC\Version)Affected if Product is Adobe Acrobat DC or Adobe Acrobat Reader DC with a version matching the affected ranges
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Determine the version number formatNote the version displayed in the About dialog or registry. The version follows the format like 15.006.30060, 17.011.30059, or 20.001.30002, where the first two digits indicate the release year (15=2015, 17=2017, 20=2020)Affected if Version format matches the pattern used in the affected ranges
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Check 2015 version rangeIf version starts with 15.x, verify if it falls between 15.006.30060 and 15.006.30523 (inclusive)Affected if Version is >= 15.006.30060 AND <= 15.006.30523
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Check 2017 version rangeIf version starts with 17.x, verify if it falls between 17.011.30059 and 17.011.30171 (inclusive)Affected if Version is >= 17.011.30059 AND <= 17.011.30171
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Check 2020 version rangeIf version starts with 20.x, verify if it falls between 15.008.20082 and 20.009.20074 (inclusive) OR equals exactly 20.001.30002Affected if Version is >= 15.008.20082 AND <= 20.009.20074, OR version equals exactly 20.001.30002
You are affected if Adobe Acrobat DC or Reader DC is installed with a version matching any of the listed ranges (15.006.30060-15.006.30523, 17.011.30059-17.011.30171, 15.008.20082-20.009.20074, or exactly 20.001.30002)
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 Adobe Acrobat and Reader to the latest patched version beyond 2020.009.20074 for the 2020 branch, or the corresponding patched releases for 2020.001, 2017, and 2015 branches.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,800.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-9712 — 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-2020-9712 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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A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.
- 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