CVE-2023-21604
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 22.003.20282 (and earlier), 22.003.20281 (and earlier) and 20.005.30418 (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 confidenceAdobe Acrobat Reader contains a stack-based buffer overflow vulnerability where a specially crafted PDF file can cause memory corruption on the stack, potentially allowing an attacker to execute arbitrary code with the privileges of the current user.
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, <= 22.003.20282>= 15.008.20082, <= 22.003.20281>= 15.008.20082, <= 22.003.20282>= 15.008.20082, <= 22.003.20281>= 20.001.30005, <= 20.005.30418>= 20.001.30005, <= 20.005.30418CVSS 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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Identify installed Adobe Acrobat or Reader versionOpen Adobe Acrobat/Reader, go to Help > About Adobe Acrobat Reader (or About Adobe Acrobat). The version number displays in the format XX.XXX.XXXXX. Alternatively, on Windows right-click the executable in Program Files > Adobe > Acrobat DC (or Reader DC) > Properties > Details to see the Product Version.Affected if The installed version falls within the affected ranges: 15.008.20082 through 22.003.20282 (or 22.003.20281) for Acrobat/Reader DC, or 20.001.30005 through 20.005.30418 for classic Acrobat/Reader versions.
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Confirm product type and channelDetermine whether the installation is Adobe Acrobat DC, Adobe Acrobat Reader DC, Adobe Acrobat (classic), or Adobe Acrobat Reader (classic). This is visible in the Help > About dialog title or in the program name under Programs and Features.Affected if The product is any of: Acrobat DC, Acrobat Reader DC, Acrobat (classic), or Reader (classic) AND the version falls within the affected ranges.
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Verify the vulnerability trigger conditionThis vulnerability requires a specially crafted PDF file to be opened. Check whether users in the environment have the ability to open PDF files from external or untrusted sources.Affected if Users can open PDF files from untrusted sources AND the installed Adobe version is within the affected version ranges.
A user is affected if Adobe Acrobat or Reader is installed with a version between 15.008.20082 and 22.003.20282 (DC products) or between 20.001.30005 and 20.005.30418 (classic products) and a malicious 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 · scopedUpdate Adobe Acrobat Reader to the latest version (later than 22.003.20282, 22.003.20281, or 20.005.30418). Additionally, enforce least-privilege user practices and train users to avoid opening untrusted PDF files.
Adobe Acrobat DC Continuous: 22.003.20284 or later; Adobe Acrobat DC Classic 2020: 20.005.30434 or later; Corresponding Acrobat Reader versions
- 1. Verify the currently installed Adobe Acrobat or Acrobat Reader version by navigating to Help > About Adobe Acrobat Reader (or About Adobe Acrobat).
- 2. For Adobe Acrobat DC (Continuous track): If version is 22.003.20282 or earlier, upgrade to version 22.003.20284 or later.
- 3. For Adobe Acrobat DC (Classic 2020 track): If version is 20.005.30418 or earlier, upgrade to version 20.005.30434 or later.
- 4. Download the fixed version from the official Adobe website at helpx.adobe.com or through your organization's software distribution method.
- 5. Close all instances of Adobe Acrobat/Reader before running the installer.
- 6. Run the installer with appropriate administrator privileges.
- 7. After installation, restart the application and verify the version under Help > About confirms the updated release.
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation6.0 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-2023-21604 — 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-2023-21604 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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