dbcve.org
Power PdfApplication · Tungstenautomation

CVE-2023-38094

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.0 Published 2024-05-03
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 5.0.0.10 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 replacePages Stack-based Buffer Overflow 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 implementation of the replacePages method. The issue results from the lack of proper validation of the length of user-supplied data prior to copying it to a fixed-length stack-based buffer. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to execute code in the context of the current process. Was ZDI-CAN-20605.

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

Stack-based buffer overflow in Kofax Power PDF's replacePages method due to insufficient validation of user-supplied data length before copying into a fixed-size stack buffer, allowing remote code execution via malicious PDF files.

MitigationApply vendor patch when available; avoid opening untrusted PDF files; run PDF applications with least privilege to limit impact.

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:< 5.0.0.10

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. Verify Power PDF installation
    Check if Tungstenautomation Power PDF is installed by looking for the executable (typically in Program Files\Tungsten Power PDF or similar), or check Windows registry under HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall for entries containing 'Power PDF' or 'Kofax'
    Affected if Power PDF is installed and the replacePages method can be invoked via a malicious PDF file
  2. Determine installed version
    Right-click the Power PDF executable (typically named PowerPDF.exe or similar), select Properties, and check the File Version field, or use command 'wmic product where "name like '%Power PDF%'" get version'
    Affected if The installed version is lower than 5.0.0.10
  3. Confirm replacePages feature accessibility
    The replacePages method is part of the PDF manipulation functionality - verify the application can open and modify PDF documents, as this is the attack surface for the vulnerability
    Affected if The application can process PDF files and the replacePages functionality is available in the installed version

A user is affected if Tungsten Power PDF is installed with a version below 5.0.0.10 and can process PDF files using the replacePages method

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 5.0.0.10 or later
Fixed in 5.0.0.10
Interim mitigation

Apply vendor patch when available; avoid opening untrusted PDF files; run PDF applications with least privilege to limit impact.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Power PDF version 5.0.0.10 or later

  1. 1. Identify the current installed version of Power PDF on the system
  2. 2. Navigate to the official Kofax website or trusted software distribution channel
  3. 3. Download the latest version of Power PDF (version 5.0.0.10 or later)
  4. 4. Verify the downloaded installer integrity using checksums if available
  5. 5. Close all running instances of Power PDF
  6. 6. Run the installer and follow the on-screen prompts to upgrade
  7. 7. After installation, verify the new version by checking 'Help' > 'About' in the application
  8. 8. Test that the replacePages functionality works correctly in the updated version

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
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
18.0 hours of engineering $3,200
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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-2023-38094 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