CVE-2022-41145
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 PDF-XChange Editor. 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 parsing of U3D files. Crafted data in a U3D file can trigger a read past the end of an allocated buffer. An attacker can leverage this in conjunction with other vulnerabilities to execute arbitrary code in the context of the current process. Was ZDI-CAN-18283.
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 · moderate confidenceThis is an out-of-bounds read vulnerability in PDF-XChange Editor's U3D file parser. A specially crafted U3D file triggers a read past the end of an allocated buffer, potentially disclosing sensitive information from memory. Exploitation requires user interaction (opening a malicious file), and the vulnerability can be chained with other flaws for code execution.
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< 9.5.366.0CVSS 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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Confirm PDF-XChange Editor installationCheck for the application in Program Files (typically C:\Program Files\PDF-XChange PDF Editor or similar), or look for the application in Windows Add/Remove Programs. On 64-bit systems, also check Program Files (x86).Affected if PDF-XChange Editor is present on the system
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Locate the installed version numberRight-click on the executable file (typically named PDFXEdit.exe) in the installation directory, select Properties, and view the Version tab. Alternatively, open the application and navigate to Help > About PDF-XChange Editor.Affected if Unable to determine the version number
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Compare your version to the affected rangeCompare the installed version (from the Version tab or About dialog) to 9.5.366.0. Note the full version string format (e.g., 9.5.365.0).Affected if Installed version is less than 9.5.366.0 (for example, 9.5.365.0, 9.4.x.x, or earlier)
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Identify U3D file handling exposureU3D is a 3D model format embedded in PDF files. Determine if users in your environment commonly open PDF files containing U3D content, or check recent PDF files for .u3d resource streams using a PDF analysis tool.Affected if Users open PDF files containing U3D 3D objects from untrusted sources
You are affected if PDF-XChange Editor version is below 9.5.366.0 AND a user opens a malicious PDF file containing a crafted U3D 3D object.
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 · scoped9.5.366.0
Apply the vendor patch when available. Until then, instruct users to avoid opening U3D files from untrusted sources or disable U3D rendering if possible.
9.5.366.0 or later
- Navigate to the official PDF-XChange Editor download page at www.tracker-software.com
- Download PDF-XChange Editor version 9.5.366.0 or later
- Install the updated version following standard installation procedures
- Verify the installed version by checking Help > About to confirm the version is 9.5.366.0 or higher
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation8.0 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-2022-41145 — 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-2022-41145 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