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Acrobat DcApplication · Adobe

CVE-2022-34219

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-07-15
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 22.001.20142 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 Acrobat Reader versions 22.001.20142 (and earlier), 20.005.30334 (and earlier) and 17.012.30229 (and earlier) are affected by a Use After Free vulnerability 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 confidence

A Use After Free vulnerability in Adobe Acrobat Reader allows arbitrary code execution via a maliciously crafted PDF file. The vulnerability occurs when the application continues to reference freed memory, potentially enabling an attacker to execute code in the context of the current user. Exploitation requires the victim to open a specially crafted PDF file.

MitigationUpdate Adobe Acrobat Reader to the latest patched version beyond 22.001.20142, 20.005.30334, or 17.012.30229. Avoid opening untrusted or unexpected PDF 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
Acrobat DcApplication
Affected:>= 15.008.20082, <= 22.001.20142
Acrobat Reader DcApplication
Affected:>= 15.008.20082, <= 22.001.20142
AcrobatApplication
Affected:>= 20.001.30005, <= 20.005.30334>= 20.001.30005, <= 20.005.30331>= 17.011.30059, <= 17.012.30229>= 17.011.30059, <= 17.012.30227
Acrobat ReaderApplication
Affected:>= 20.001.30005, <= 20.005.30334>= 20.001.30005, <= 20.005.30331>= 17.011.30059, <= 17.012.30229>= 17.011.30059, <= 17.012.30227

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. Confirm Adobe Acrobat installation
    Check for installed Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader on the system. On Windows, inspect 'Add or Remove Programs' or the following registry key: HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\App Paths\Acrobat.exe. On macOS, check /Applications for Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader.
    Affected if Neither Adobe Acrobat nor Adobe Acrobat Reader is installed on the system.
  2. Retrieve installed version number
    Open Adobe Acrobat Reader or Adobe Acrobat, then navigate to Help > About Adobe Acrobat Reader (or About Adobe Acrobat). Alternatively, right-click the executable file, select Properties, and view the Details tab for the Product Version.
    Affected if Unable to determine the version number from the application or executable.
  3. Compare version against affected ranges
    Match your installed version number against the following affected ranges: 15.008.20082 through 22.001.20142 (Acrobat/Reader DC); 20.001.30005 through 20.005.30334 or 20.005.30331 (2020 versions); 17.011.30059 through 17.012.30229 or 17.012.30227 (2017 versions). If your version falls within any of these ranges, the installation is vulnerable.
    Affected if The installed version falls within any of the listed affected version ranges.
  4. Verify PDF handling capability
    Attempt to open a PDF file in the installed Adobe Acrobat application to confirm the PDF processing module is active and functional.
    Affected if PDF files can be successfully opened, indicating the vulnerable component is enabled and accessible.

If Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader is installed with a version number matching the ranges 15.008.20082 to 22.001.20142, 20.001.30005 to 20.005.30334 (or 20.005.30331), or 17.011.30059 to 17.012.30229 (or 17.012.30227), and the application can open PDF files, the environment is affected by this 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 a release after 22.001.20142
Interim mitigation

Update Adobe Acrobat Reader to the latest patched version beyond 22.001.20142, 20.005.30334, or 17.012.30229. Avoid opening untrusted or unexpected PDF files from unknown sources.

Recommended fix High confidence

Acrobat/Acrobat Reader 22.x: upgrade to 22.001.20193 or later; 20.x: upgrade to 20.005.30345 or later; 17.x: upgrade to 17.012.30293 or later

  1. 1. Identify the installed Adobe Acrobat or Acrobat Reader version by opening the application, selecting Help > About (or pressing Ctrl+Shift+I on Windows / Cmd+Shift+I on macOS)
  2. 2. For Acrobat/Acrobat Reader 22.x (2022): Upgrade to version 22.001.20193 or later
  3. 3. For Acrobat/Acrobat Reader 20.x (2020): Upgrade to version 20.005.30345 or later
  4. 4. For Acrobat/Acrobat Reader 17.x (2017): Upgrade to version 17.012.30293 or later
  5. 5. Download the latest version from the official Adobe Acrobat download page at https://get.adobe.com/reader/ or https://get.adobe.com/acrobat/
  6. 6. Close all Adobe applications before running the installer
  7. 7. Run the installer and follow the prompts to complete the upgrade
  8. 8. After installation, verify the new version by checking Help > About to confirm the version number is beyond the vulnerable releases listed
Caveat Standard Adobe update - minimal risk; ensure stable power during installation and back up any critical PDF forms if heavily customized

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

Fix this in Acrobat Dc Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
5.0 hours of engineering $890
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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-2022-34219 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