CVE-2022-38450
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 22.002.20212 (and earlier) and 20.005.30381 (and earlier) are affected by a Stack-based Buffer Overflow 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 confidenceA stack-based buffer overflow vulnerability exists in Adobe Acrobat Reader versions 22.002.20212 and earlier, as well as 20.005.30381 and earlier. The flaw allows arbitrary code execution when a user opens a specially crafted malicious PDF file. The vulnerability stems from insufficient bounds checking on stack-allocated buffers, enabling an attacker to overwrite stack memory and redirect execution flow.
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, < 22.003.20258>= 15.008.20082, < 22.003.20258>= 20.001.30005, < 20.005.30407>= 20.001.30005, < 20.005.30407CVSS 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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Verify Adobe Acrobat installationCheck for Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader installation. On Windows: inspect registry key HKLM\SOFTWARE\Adobe\Acrobat or look in Program Files for Adobe folders. On Mac: inspect /Applications for Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader.Affected if Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader is installed
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Determine installed versionOpen Adobe Acrobat/Reader, then go to Help > About Adobe Acrobat (or Reader) to display the exact version number. Alternatively on Windows, check the registry value in HKLM\SOFTWARE\Adobe\Acrobat\Install\Version (or Reader\Install\Version).Affected if Version displayed is within the affected ranges below
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Compare version against affected ranges for Acrobat DC/Reader DCIf using Acrobat DC or Acrobat Reader DC (continuous track), compare your installed version against: 15.008.20082 <= version < 22.003.20258. Versions 22.002.20212 and earlier, and 20.005.30381 and earlier are affected.Affected if Installed version is 22.002.20212 or earlier, or 20.005.30381 or earlier for the 20.x track
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Compare version against affected ranges for Acrobat/Reader (classic)If using Acrobat or Acrobat Reader classic (2020 track), compare your installed version against: 20.001.30005 <= version < 20.005.30407. Versions 20.005.30381 and earlier are affected.Affected if Installed version is 20.005.30381 or earlier for the classic 2020 track
You are affected if Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader is installed AND the installed version falls within any of the affected version ranges (15.008.20082 to 22.003.20258 for DC, or 20.001.30005 to 20.005.30407 for classic), and a specially crafted PDF file is opened.
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 · scoped20.005.3040722.003.20258
Apply the vendor-supplied security update to Adobe Acrobat Reader to obtain a version newer than 22.002.20212 or 20.005.30381. Additionally, enforce user awareness to avoid opening PDF files from untrusted sources and consider disabling JavaScript execution in Acrobat Reader as a defense-in-depth measure.
Acrobat Dc/Reader Dc: 22.003.20258 or later; Acrobat/Reader Classic: 20.005.30407 or later
- 1. Verify current Adobe Acrobat/Reader version by opening the application and navigating to Help > About Adobe Acrobat Reader (or About Adobe Acrobat for the full product)
- 2. For Acrobat Dc/Acrobat Reader Dc (Continuous track): Upgrade to version 22.003.20258 or later
- 3. For Acrobat/Acrobat Reader (Classic track): Upgrade to version 20.005.30407 or later
- 4. Download the latest version from the official Adobe website or use the built-in update mechanism (Help > Check for Updates)
- 5. Install the update and restart the application
- 6. Verify the installed version matches or exceeds the fixed release after installation
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing1.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2022-38450 — 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-2022-38450 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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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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