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IllustratorApplication · Adobe

CVE-2022-23187

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-03-11
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 25.4.5 / 26.1.0 or later.
See remediation →
81/100
Remediation priority · High
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
Adobe Illustrator version 26.0.3 (and earlier) is affected by a buffer overflow vulnerability due to insecure handling of a crafted file, potentially resulting in arbitrary code execution in the context of the current user. Exploitation requires user interaction in that a victim must open a crafted file in Illustrator.

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

A buffer overflow vulnerability in Adobe Illustrator versions 26.0.3 and earlier allows arbitrary code execution through insecure handling of specially crafted files. The attack requires user interaction, specifically opening a malicious file in the affected Illustrator version.

MitigationApply the vendor-supplied Adobe security update to Illustrator version 26.0.4 or later. Until patched, avoid opening untrusted or unsolicited AI/EPS files from unknown sources.

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
IllustratorApplication
Affected:>= 25.0, < 25.4.5>= 26.0, < 26.1.0

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
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 checks

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

  1. Identify installed Adobe Illustrator version
    Open Adobe Illustrator and navigate to Help > About Illustrator, or check the application version through your system's installed programs list
    Affected if Unable to confirm Illustrator is installed, or version displayed is not visible
  2. Compare version against first vulnerable range
    Note the full version number (for example, 25.x or 26.x) and check if it falls within >= 25.0 and < 25.4.5
    Affected if Version starts with 25.x and is 25.4.4 or lower, or 25.0 through 25.4.4 inclusive
  3. Compare version against second vulnerable range
    Check if the installed version is >= 26.0 but lower than 26.1.0 (such as 26.0, 26.0.1, 26.0.2, or 26.0.3)
    Affected if Version is 26.0, 26.0.1, 26.0.2, or 26.0.3 (any 26.0.x version below 26.1.0)
  4. Confirm file handling is possible
    Verify Illustrator can open AI or EPS files (this is the default functionality required for the attack vector)
    Affected if Illustrator is installed and has the capability to open files, combined with a vulnerable version from steps 2 or 3

You are affected if Adobe Illustrator is installed and its version falls within 25.0 to 25.4.4, or 26.0 to 26.0.3, since these ranges contain the buffer overflow vulnerability.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 25.4.5 / 26.1.0 or later
Fixed in 25.4.526.1.0
Interim mitigation

Apply the vendor-supplied Adobe security update to Illustrator version 26.0.4 or later. Until patched, avoid opening untrusted or unsolicited AI/EPS files from unknown sources.

Recommended fix High confidence

25.4.5 for versions 25.0-25.4.4; 26.1.0 for versions 26.0-26.0.3

  1. Close Adobe Illustrator if currently running
  2. Navigate to Adobe's official download page for Illustrator (helpx.adobe.com)
  3. Download Adobe Illustrator version 25.4.5 (if currently on 25.x line) or version 26.1.0 (if currently on 26.x line)
  4. Run the installer and follow the on-screen prompts to complete the installation
  5. Restart Illustrator and verify the version number matches the expected fixed release
Caveat Standard Adobe update precautions apply - backup custom presets and preferences before upgrading

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Illustrator Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
6.0 hours of engineering $1,040
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,664.

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-2022-23187 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