CVE-2021-42721
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 · uneditedAcrobat Bridge versions 11.1.1 and earlier are affected by a use-after-free vulnerability in the processing of Format event actions that could result in arbitrary code execution in the context of the current user. Exploitation of this issue requires user interaction in that a victim must open a malicious 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 confidenceAdobe Acrobat Bridge versions 11.1.1 and earlier contain a use-after-free vulnerability in the processing of Format event actions. When a user opens a malicious PDF file containing specially crafted Format event actions, the vulnerability allows an attacker to execute arbitrary code in the context of the current user's privileges.
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<= 15.4CVSS 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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Verify Adobe Acrobat Bridge installationCheck for Bridge in the Windows registry at HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\App Paths\Acrobat Bridge 11.exe, or look for the executable in typical install paths like C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe Bridge 11\ or C:\Program Files (x86)\Adobe\Adobe Bridge 11\Affected if Adobe Acrobat Bridge version 11.1.1 or earlier is installed
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Determine installed Bridge versionRight-click on the Bridge executable (Bridge.exe), select Properties, and check the File Version on the Details tab. Alternatively, run 'Bridge.exe -version' from the install directory if supported.Affected if The reported version is 11.1.1, 11.1.0, or any earlier 11.x release (versions prior to 11.1.2)
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Confirm Format event action processing is accessibleAdobe Acrobat Bridge processes PDF files including their event actions when opening them for preview or editing. Verify Bridge can open PDF documents by attempting to open a PDF file through Bridge's File > Open menu.Affected if Bridge can open PDF files and process their event actions, meaning the vulnerability is reachable if a malicious PDF is opened
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Check for recent Bridge usage or logsReview Bridge application logs in the user profile directory (typically %APPDATA%\Adobe\Bridge\Logs\) for any suspicious PDF open events, or check browser/download folders for recently opened PDF files that may have been processed through Bridge.Affected if Evidence exists of untrusted PDF files having been opened through Bridge, indicating potential exploitation attempt
You are affected if Adobe Acrobat Bridge version 11.1.1 or earlier is installed and users can open PDF files through it, allowing specially crafted Format event actions to trigger the use-after-free condition.
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 dataApply the vendor security update for Adobe Acrobat Bridge to version 11.1.2 or later. Until patched, warn users against opening untrusted PDF files and consider deploying additional document sandboxing controls.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing12.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-42721 — 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-2021-42721 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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