CVE-2022-42376
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-18529.
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 confidenceOut-of-bounds read vulnerability in PDF-XChange Editor's U3D file parser. The parsing logic fails to properly validate bounds when processing crafted U3D data, allowing an attacker to read past the end of an allocated buffer and leak sensitive memory contents. Requires user to open a malicious file or visit a malicious page. Can be chained with other vulnerabilities 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 is installedCheck for the application in Program Files (e.g., C:\Program Files\PDF-XChange\PDF-XChange Editor) or check Add/Remove Programs for 'PDF-XChange Editor'Affected if The application is present on the system
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Identify installed version numberRight-click the executable (PDFXEdit.exe or similar), select Properties, then check the Details tab for Product Version. Alternatively, open the app and go to Help > About to display the version.Affected if Version displayed is lower than 9.5.366.0
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Verify U3D file handling capabilityCheck if the application has loaded U3D parsing modules by examining installed plugins or checking if U3D import options are available in the application.Affected if U3D parsing functionality exists in the installation and the user has opened or could open U3D content
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Review recent file access logsExamine Windows Event Viewer or application logs for recent .u3d file opens within PDF-XChange Editor, or check browser/download history for recent PDF files that may contain embedded U3D objects.Affected if User has opened PDF files containing U3D data from untrusted sources
A user is affected if PDF-XChange Editor version is installed and is below 9.5.366.0, and the user has opened or could open files containing U3D content.
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
Avoid opening untrusted U3D files or visiting untrusted pages until a vendor patch is available. Monitor for PDF-XChange Editor updates.
9.5.366.0 or later
- Check the current version of PDF-XChange Editor installed (Help > About)
- Navigate to the official Tracker Software website (www.tracker-software.com) to download the latest version
- Download and install PDF-XChange Editor version 9.5.366.0 or later
- Verify the installation was successful by checking the version number (Help > About)
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2022-42376 — 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-2022-42376 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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