CVE-2022-34226
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 · uneditedAdobe Acrobat Reader versions 22.001.20142 (and earlier), 20.005.30334 (and earlier) and 17.012.30229 (and earlier) are affected by an out-of-bounds read vulnerability when parsing a crafted file, which could result in a read past the end of an allocated memory structure. An attacker could leverage this vulnerability to execute code 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 Reader contains an out-of-bounds read vulnerability in its PDF parsing logic. When parsing a specially crafted PDF file, the parser reads past the end of an allocated memory structure, potentially exposing sensitive memory contents. This information disclosure can be leveraged to bypass security mitigations like ASLR and, combined with other vulnerabilities, enable arbitrary code execution in the context of the current user.
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>= 15.008.20082, <= 22.001.20142>= 15.008.20082, <= 22.001.20142>= 20.001.30005, <= 20.005.30334>= 20.001.30005, <= 20.005.30331>= 17.011.30059, <= 17.012.30229>= 17.011.30059, <= 17.012.30227>= 20.001.30005, <= 20.005.30334>= 20.001.30005, <= 20.005.30331>= 17.011.30059, <= 17.012.30229>= 17.011.30059, <= 17.012.30227CVSS 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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Check if Adobe Acrobat Reader is installedOn Windows, open Programs and Features or run 'Get-ItemProperty HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\* | Select-Object DisplayName, DisplayVersion' in PowerShell. On macOS, check /Applications for Adobe Acrobat Reader.app.Affected if Adobe Acrobat Reader or Adobe Acrobat is present on the system
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Determine the installed version numberOn Windows, right-click the Adobe Acrobat Reader shortcut, select Properties, and look at the Details tab for File Version. Alternatively, open Adobe Acrobat Reader, go to Help > About Adobe Acrobat Reader to see the exact version.Affected if The displayed version falls within the affected ranges: 15.008.20082 to 22.001.20142, 20.001.30005 to 20.005.30334, 17.011.30059 to 17.012.30229, or 17.011.30059 to 17.012.30227
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Verify the exact build numberIn Adobe Acrobat Reader, go to Help > About Adobe Acrobat Reader and note the exact build number shown (for example, 22.001.20142 or 20.005.30334). Compare this to the upper bounds of the affected ranges.Affected if The build number is less than or equal to 22.001.20142, 20.005.30334, or 17.012.30229 as applicable to your major version line
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Confirm the product typeDetermine whether you have Adobe Acrobat (full paid version) or Adobe Acrobat Reader (free version). Check the product name in Help > About, as both product lines share the affected version ranges.Affected if Either Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader is installed with a version matching the affected ranges
You are affected if Adobe Acrobat Reader or Adobe Acrobat is installed with a version between 15.008.20082 and 22.001.20142, or within the 20.x and 17.x version ranges specified in the affected products list.
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.
dbcve · scopedUpdate Adobe Acrobat Reader to a version newer than 22.001.20142, 20.005.30334, or 17.012.30229 as applicable. Until patched, warn users against opening untrusted PDF files from unknown sources.
Adobe Acrobat/Reader 22.002.20xxx (Continuous), 20.005.30345 (2020), or 17.012.30293 (2017) or later - choose the appropriate track based on your current installation
- 1. Verify the current Adobe Acrobat or Acrobat Reader version by opening the application and navigating to Help > About Adobe Acrobat Reader (or About Adobe Acrobat).
- 2. Close all Adobe Acrobat/Reader instances.
- 3. Download the latest version of Adobe Acrobat or Acrobat Reader from the official Adobe website at get.adobe.com/reader or adobe.com/acrobat.
- 4. Run the installer and follow the on-screen prompts to complete the upgrade.
- 5. After installation, verify the version matches or exceeds the fixed release: 22.002.20xxx or later for Continuous track, 20.005.30345 or later for 2020 track, or 17.012.30293 or later for 2017 track.
- 6. Alternatively, use Adobe's official patch deployment tools or enterprise management solutions for organizational deployments.
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- 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-2022-34226 — 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-2022-34226 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
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data