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AcrobatApplication · Adobe

CVE-2022-44517

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-12-19
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 17.012.30227 / 17.012.30229 or later.
See remediation →
58/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
No privileges

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 · unedited
Acrobat Reader DC version 22.001.20085 (and earlier), 20.005.3031x (and earlier) and 17.012.30205 (and earlier) are affected by an out-of-bounds read vulnerability when parsing a crafted file, which could result in a read past the end of an allocated memory structure. 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 confidence

Adobe Acrobat Reader DC contains an out-of-bounds read vulnerability when parsing crafted PDF files, allowing an attacker to read past the end of allocated memory structures. This information disclosure could potentially be chained with other vulnerabilities to bypass ASLR mitigation. Exploitation requires user interaction via opening a malicious PDF file.

MitigationApply the vendor security update to the latest patched version of Adobe Acrobat Reader DC for all affected versions (22.x, 20.x, 17.x). Until patched, exercise caution with untrusted PDF files.

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
AcrobatApplication
Affected:>= 17.011.30059, < 17.012.30229>= 20.001.30002, < 20.005.30334>= 17.011.30059, < 17.012.30227>= 20.001.30002, < 20.005.30331
Acrobat DcApplication
Affected:>= 22.001.20085, < 22.001.20117>= 22.001.20085, < 22.001.20112
Acrobat ReaderApplication
Affected:>= 17.011.30059, < 17.012.30229>= 20.001.30002, < 20.005.30334>= 17.011.30059, < 17.012.30227>= 20.001.30002, < 20.005.30331
Acrobat Reader DcApplication
Affected:>= 22.001.20085, < 22.001.20117>= 22.001.20085, < 22.001.20112

CVSS 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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Check if Adobe Acrobat Reader DC is installed
    On Windows: Open Control Panel > Programs and Features, look for Adobe Acrobat Reader DC. On macOS: Open Finder > Applications, look for Adobe Acrobat Reader.
    Affected if Adobe Acrobat Reader DC is not present on the system.
  2. Determine the installed version number
    Open Adobe Acrobat Reader DC, go to Help > About Adobe Acrobat Reader. The version number appears in the format like 22.001.20xxx or 20.005.30xxx.
    Affected if Unable to retrieve version information.
  3. Compare against vulnerable version ranges
    Compare your installed version to these ranges: 17.x: 17.011.30059 to 17.012.30229; 20.x: 20.001.30002 to 20.005.30334; 22.x: 22.001.20085 to 22.001.20117. Note that two separate patches exist for some branches, covering slightly different ranges.
    Affected if Installed version falls within any of the affected ranges: 17.011.30059 - 17.012.30229, 20.001.30002 - 20.005.30334, or 22.001.20085 - 22.001.20117.
  4. Verify PDF handling is the attack vector
    This vulnerability triggers when parsing a crafted PDF file. The flaw is in the PDF parsing engine, not a configuration setting.
    Affected if PDF parsing functionality is available (default state) and a malicious PDF is opened.

User is affected if Adobe Acrobat Reader DC version falls within the vulnerable ranges AND the user opens a maliciously crafted PDF file.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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 · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 17.012.30227 / 17.012.30229 / 20.005.30331 or later
Fixed in 17.012.3022717.012.3022920.005.30331
Interim mitigation

Apply the vendor security update to the latest patched version of Adobe Acrobat Reader DC for all affected versions (22.x, 20.x, 17.x). Until patched, exercise caution with untrusted PDF files.

Recommended fix High confidence

Adobe Acrobat/Reader 17.012.30229+ (17.x), 20.005.30334+ (20.x), or 22.001.20117+ (22.x) depending on product line

  1. 1. Verify current Adobe Acrobat or Reader version by opening the application, clicking Help > About Adobe Acrobat Reader (or About Adobe Acrobat).
  2. 2. Identify which product and version range applies from: Acrobat 17.x, Acrobat 20.x, Acrobat Reader 17.x, Acrobat Reader 20.x, Acrobat DC 22.x, or Acrobat Reader DC 22.x.
  3. 3. For Acrobat/Acrobat Reader 17.x: upgrade to version 17.012.30229 or later (specifically 17.012.30227 fixes this issue).
  4. 4. For Acrobat/Acrobat Reader 20.x: upgrade to version 20.005.30334 or later (specifically 20.005.30331 fixes this issue).
  5. 5. For Acrobat DC/Acrobat Reader DC 22.x: upgrade to version 22.001.20117 or later (specifically 22.001.20112 fixes this issue).
  6. 6. Download the latest version from the official Adobe website at get.adobe.com/reader or get.adobe.com/acrobat (or use Adobe's auto-update via Help > Check for Updates).
  7. 7. Install the updated version and restart the application.
  8. 8. Confirm the version matches or exceeds the fixed release for your product line.
Caveat Standard upgrade risk - ensure compatibility with existing PDF workflows and plugins before deploying enterprise-wide

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Acrobat Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
12.0 hours of engineering $2,080
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2022-44517 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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What belongs here
  • 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