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Power PdfApplication · Tungstenautomation

CVE-2023-37350

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.0 Published 2024-05-03
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 5.0.0.11 or later.
See remediation →
81/100
Remediation priority · High
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
Kofax Power PDF TIF File Parsing Out-Of-Bounds Write Remote Code Execution Vulnerability. This vulnerability allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code on affected installations of Kofax Power PDF. 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 TIF files. The issue results from the lack of proper validation of user-supplied data, which can result in a write past the end of an allocated object. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to execute code in the context of the current process. Was ZDI-CAN-20452.

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

Kofax Power PDF contains an out-of-bounds write vulnerability in its TIF file parsing logic. The flaw results from insufficient validation of user-supplied data during TIF file processing, allowing an attacker to write past the end of an allocated buffer. Successful exploitation enables arbitrary code execution within the context of the current process.

MitigationAvoid opening TIF files from untrusted sources. Apply vendor patches when available. Consider deploying additional endpoint protection to detect anomalous file processing behavior.

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
Power PdfApplication
Affected:< 5.0.0.11

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
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.0/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 checks

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

  1. Confirm Power PDF installation
    Check for Tungstenautomation Power PDF or Kofax Power PDF in the list of installed programs via Control Panel > Programs and Features, or use PowerShell: Get-ItemProperty HKLM:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\* | Select-Object DisplayName | Where-Object {$_.DisplayName -match 'Power PDF'}
    Affected if The software is not listed or not present on the system, then this CVE does not apply.
  2. Identify the installed version
    In Programs and Features, locate the Power PDF entry and check the Version column, or right-click the Power PDF application icon, select Properties, and view the File Version under the Details tab.
    Affected if The version displayed is less than 5.0.0.11, indicating the installed version falls within the affected range.
  3. Verify via command line
    If the Power PDF executable is located (commonly in C:\Program Files\Kofax\Power PDF or C:\Program Files\Tungsten Power PDF), run: (Get-Item 'C:\Program Files\Kofax\Power PDF\Bin\Power PDF.exe').VersionInfo.FileVersion - or adjust the path based on actual installation directory.
    Affected if The version returned is below 5.0.0.11, confirming the vulnerability is present.
  4. Check for recent file processing activity
    Review recent document history or temp folders for TIF/TIFF files that may have been opened in Power PDF, or check the application logs if available, to determine if the vulnerable TIF parsing feature has been exercised.
    Affected if TIF files have been processed by this version, the out-of-bounds write condition could have been triggered during that processing.

A system is affected if Tungstenautomation Power PDF or Kofax Power PDF is installed with a version number lower than 5.0.0.11 and the application has been used to process TIF files.

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 5.0.0.11 or later
Fixed in 5.0.0.11
Interim mitigation

Avoid opening TIF files from untrusted sources. Apply vendor patches when available. Consider deploying additional endpoint protection to detect anomalous file processing behavior.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Power PDF 5.0.0.11 or later

  1. Identify the current installed version of Kofax Power PDF
  2. Navigate to the official Kofax support or download website to obtain the latest version
  3. Download Power PDF version 5.0.0.11 or later
  4. Close any running instances of Power PDF
  5. Run the installer and follow the prompts to upgrade the software
  6. After installation, verify the updated version matches 5.0.0.11 or higher

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

Fix this in Power Pdf Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
24.0 hours of engineering $4,160
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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-2023-37350 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

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