CVE-2022-34238
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 Reader versions 22.001.20142 (and earlier), 20.005.30334 (and earlier) and 20.005.30334 (and earlier) are affected by an out-of-bounds read vulnerability that could lead to disclosure of sensitive memory. An attacker could leverage this vulnerability to bypass mitigations such as ASLR. 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 that allows disclosure of sensitive memory when processing maliciously crafted PDF files. This memory disclosure can potentially be leveraged to bypass ASLR (Address Space Layout Randomization) as a secondary exploitation enabler. The vulnerability requires user interaction, specifically the victim opening a malicious PDF file.
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
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
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 Adobe productCheck installed programs for Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader. On Windows, use 'Get-ItemProperty' on registry keys under HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall or check C:\Program Files\Adobe. On macOS, check /Applications for Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Reader apps.Affected if Product is Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader (any version)
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Determine exact version numberRight-click the Adobe application icon, select Properties, and view the Details tab for the version. On Windows command line, run 'wmic product where "name like 'Adobe%'" get name,version'. On macOS, run 'mdls -name kMDItemVersion /Applications/Adobe*.app'.Affected if Version is present in the installed product listing
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Compare version to vulnerable rangesMatch the installed version against these vulnerable ranges: 15.008.20082 to 22.001.20142 for DC products; 20.001.30005 to 20.005.30334 or 20.005.30331 for version 20.x; 17.011.30059 to 17.012.30229 or 17.012.30227 for version 17.x. Any version falling within these ranges is vulnerable.Affected if Installed version falls within any of these ranges: 15.008.20082-22.001.20142 (DC), 20.001.30005-20.005.30334, 20.001.30005-20.005.30331, 17.011.30059-17.012.30229, or 17.011.30059-17.012.30227
User is affected if they have Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader installed with a version within the vulnerable ranges AND they open untrusted PDF files.
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 the latest patched version beyond the vulnerable releases (22.001.20142 and 20.005.30334). Implement patch management processes and educate users to avoid opening untrusted PDF files.
Adobe Acrobat DC/Reader DC version 22.001.20143 or later (or the latest available version); Adobe Acrobat/Reader version 20.005.30335 or later for legacy versions
- 1. Verify current Adobe Acrobat or Reader version by opening the application and navigating to Help > About Adobe Acrobat (or Reader)
- 2. Close all Adobe Acrobat or Reader instances
- 3. Download the latest version of Adobe Acrobat or Reader from the official Adobe website (adobe.com) or your organization's software distribution point
- 4. Run the installer and follow the prompts to complete the upgrade
- 5. Restart your computer if prompted
- 6. Verify the upgrade was successful by checking the version number again - it should show version 22.001.20143 or later for DC versions, or 20.005.30335 or later for version 20.x
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing1.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,200.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2022-34238 — 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-2022-34238 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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