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AcrobatApplication · Adobe

CVE-2021-28546

MEDIUM · 6.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-04-01
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 20.013.20074 or later.
See remediation →
72/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable No privileges

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 · unedited
Acrobat Reader DC versions versions 2020.013.20074 (and earlier), 2020.001.30018 (and earlier) and 2017.011.30188 (and earlier) are missing support for an integrity check. An unauthenticated attacker could leverage this vulnerability to modify content in a certified PDF without invalidating the certification. Exploitation of this issue requires user interaction in that a victim must open the tampered file.

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 confidence

This vulnerability in Adobe Acrobat Reader DC allows modification of certified PDF content without invalidating the digital signature. The missing integrity check means attackers can tamper with certified documents while the signature still appears valid, bypassing security controls designed to detect document modification.

MitigationUpdate Adobe Acrobat Reader DC to a patched version beyond 2020.013.20074, 2020.001.30018, or 2017.011.30188. Avoid opening untrusted PDF files until the update is applied.

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
AcrobatApplication
Affected:>= 17.011.30059, <= 17.011.30188>= 20.001.30005, <= 20.001.30018
Acrobat DcApplication
Affected:>= 15.008.20082, <= 20.013.20074
Acrobat ReaderApplication
Affected:>= 17.011.30059, <= 17.011.30188>= 20.001.30005, <= 20.001.30018
Acrobat Reader DcApplication
Affected:>= 15.008.20082, <= 20.013.20074

CVSS 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
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
High
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Locate Adobe Acrobat or Reader installation
    Open the application, go to Help > About Adobe Acrobat Reader (or Adobe Acrobat). Alternatively, locate the executable (AcroRd32.exe or AcroTray.exe) in the program files directory and right-click to view Properties > Details for the version number.
    Affected if The software is Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader DC/Classic in any version.
  2. Extract the exact installed version number
    Note the full version string displayed in the About dialog (for example, 20.001.30018 or 17.011.30145). Record all four digit groups precisely.
    Affected if Version cannot be determined from the About dialog or file properties.
  3. Compare version against affected ranges
    Check if the installed version falls within any of these ranges: 15.008.20082 through 20.013.20074; 17.011.30059 through 17.011.30188; 20.001.30005 through 20.001.30018. Use a version comparison tool or manually compare each numeric segment.
    Affected if The installed version is equal to or greater than the minimum AND equal to or less than the maximum of any affected range listed.
  4. Identify product variant
    Confirm whether the installation is Adobe Acrobat (full), Adobe Acrobat Reader (free), or Adobe Acrobat DC (subscription model). Check the title bar of the application or the About dialog which displays the product name.
    Affected if The product is Adobe Acrobat, Adobe Acrobat Reader, or Adobe Acrobat DC in any of the affected versions.
  5. Assess exposure to certified PDFs
    Determine if the environment routinely opens or processes certified (digitally signed) PDF documents. Certified PDFs display a blue ribbon icon in the signature panel. Check whether workflows involve reviewing or approving certified documents from external sources.
    Affected if The software is vulnerable AND the user or organization works with certified PDF documents.

A user is affected if Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader DC/Classic is installed with a version number falling within any of the specified affected ranges and the software is used to handle certified PDF documents.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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 data
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 20.013.20074
Interim mitigation

Update Adobe Acrobat Reader DC to a patched version beyond 2020.013.20074, 2020.001.30018, or 2017.011.30188. Avoid opening untrusted PDF files until the update is applied.

Fix this in Acrobat Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,780
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Scan for this in your stack

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2021-28546 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

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.

What belongs here
  • 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