CVE-2021-31452
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 10.1.1.37576. 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 XFA forms. The issue results from the lack of proper validation of user-supplied data, which can result in a write past the end of an allocated data structure. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to execute code in the context of the current process. Was ZDI-CAN-13091.
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 confidenceA buffer overflow vulnerability in Foxit Reader 10.1.1.37576 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a malicious PDF file or webpage containing a specially crafted XFA form. The flaw stems from insufficient validation of user-supplied data when handling XFA forms, leading to a write-past-end-of-allocated-buffer condition that can be leveraged for code execution in the current process context.
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<= 10.1.3.37598<= 9.7.5.29616>= 10.0.0.0, <= 10.1.3.37598CVSS 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 productCheck for Foxit Reader or PhantomPDF in the Windows registry under HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall or look in C:\Program Files\Foxit Software or C:\Program Files (x86)\Foxit SoftwareAffected if Either Foxit Reader or PhantomPDF is installed on the system
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Determine Foxit Reader versionOpen Foxit Reader, go to Help > About Foxit Reader, or check the version in the registry at HKLM\SOFTWARE\FoxitSoftware\Foxit Reader\CurrentVersionAffected if The displayed version is 10.1.3.37598 or lower
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Determine PhantomPDF versionOpen PhantomPDF, go to Help > About Foxit PhantomPDF, or check the version in the registry at HKLM\SOFTWARE\FoxitSoftware\Foxit PhantomPDF\CurrentVersionAffected if The displayed version is 9.7.5.29616 or 10.0.0.0 through 10.1.3.37598
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Confirm XFA form support is enabledIn Foxit Reader or PhantomPDF, go to File > Preferences > Forms and check if 'Enable XFA forms' or similar XFA-related options are checked/enabledAffected if XFA form support is enabled and the version is within the affected ranges listed above
You are affected if Foxit Reader version 10.1.3.37598 or lower, or PhantomPDF version 9.7.5.29616 or any version from 10.0.0.0 to 10.1.3.37598 is installed AND XFA form support is enabled in the application preferences.
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 Foxit Reader to the latest patched version. Avoid opening PDF files from untrusted sources or clicking links to untrusted webpages until the update is applied.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 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-2021-31452 — 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-2021-31452 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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