CVE-2022-37379
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 · uneditedThis vulnerability allows remote attackers to disclose sensitive information on affected installations of Foxit PDF Reader 11.2.1.53537. User interaction is required to exploit this vulnerability in that the target must visit a malicious page or open a malicious file. The specific flaw exists within the handling of the AFSpecial_KeystrokeEx method. The issue results from the lack of validating the existence of an object prior to performing operations on the object. An attacker can leverage this in conjunction with other vulnerabilities to execute arbitrary code in the context of the current process. Was ZDI-CAN-17168.
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 confidenceThis is an information disclosure vulnerability in Foxit PDF Reader 11.2.1.53537. The AFSpecial_KeystrokeEx method lacks proper validation of object existence before performing operations on it, allowing attackers to potentially access sensitive information. When chained with other vulnerabilities, this can lead to arbitrary code execution in the current process.
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< 10.1.9>= 11.0.0, < 11.2.3= 12.0.0.12394< 12.0.1CVSS 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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Check if Foxit PDF Reader is installedOpen Windows Control Panel > Programs and Features, or run 'Get-ItemProperty HKLM:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\* | Select-Object DisplayName, DisplayVersion' in PowerShell to list installed programs and their versionsAffected if Foxit PDF Reader appears in the installed programs list
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Determine the installed Foxit PDF Reader versionRight-click the Foxit PDF Reader icon, select 'About Foxit Reader' or go to Help > About Foxit Reader to view the exact version number displayed in the dialogAffected if The version shown is earlier than 12.0.1 (for example, 11.2.1.53537 as mentioned in the CVE summary)
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Verify the vulnerable method exists in the installationCheck the Foxit PDF Reader installation directory (typically C:\Program Files\Foxit Software\Foxit Reader\) for the main executable and confirm the application runs without updated patchesAffected if The application is the pre-patch version and responds to JavaScript-based plugin or add-on operations
You are affected if Foxit PDF Reader version 12.0.1 or later is NOT installed on your system.
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 · scoped10.1.911.2.312.0.1
Update Foxit PDF Reader to the latest version that includes the vendor patch. Avoid opening untrusted PDF files or visiting malicious web pages until the update is applied.
Foxit Pdf Reader: 12.0.1 or later; Foxit Pdf Editor: 10.1.9, 11.2.3, or 12.0.1 or later depending on major version
- Identify the installed Foxit PDF product (Pdf Editor or Pdf Reader) and its current version number
- For Foxit Pdf Editor: Upgrade to version 10.1.9 or later if using version 10.x; Upgrade to version 11.2.3 or later if using version 11.x; Upgrade to version 12.0.1 or later if using version 12.x (avoid build 12394)
- For Foxit Pdf Reader: Upgrade to version 12.0.1 or later
- Download the latest version from the official Foxit website at www.foxit.com
- Verify the upgrade was successful by checking the new version number in the application
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2022-37379 — 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-2022-37379 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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