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Pdf EditorApplication · Foxit

CVE-2023-38111

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.0 Published 2024-05-03
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 11.1.4.1121 / 12.1.0.1229 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
Foxit PDF Reader Annotation Use-After-Free Remote Code Execution Vulnerability. This vulnerability allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code on affected installations of Foxit PDF Reader. 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 handling of Annotation objects. The issue results from the lack of validating the existence of an object prior to performing operations on the object. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to execute code in the context of the current process. Was ZDI-CAN-21025.

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

A use-after-free vulnerability exists in Foxit PDF Reader's Annotation object handling. The software fails to validate object existence before performing operations, allowing attackers to exploit dangling pointers and execute arbitrary code in the current process context through malicious PDF files or web pages.

MitigationUpdate Foxit PDF Reader to the latest version containing the security patch. Avoid opening untrusted PDF files or visiting malicious websites until the update is applied.

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
Pdf EditorApplication
Affected:<= 10.1.12.37872>= 11.0.0, <= 11.2.6.53790>= 12.0.0, <= 12.1.2.15332< 11.1.4.1121>= 12.0.0.0601, < 12.1.0.1229
Pdf ReaderApplication
Affected:<= 12.1.2.15332< 12.1.0.1229

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 Foxit PDF Reader is installed
    Open Windows Settings > Apps & Features or use 'Get-ItemProperty' in PowerShell: Get-ItemProperty HKLM:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\* | Where-Object {$_.DisplayName -like '*Foxit*Reader*'} | Select-Object DisplayName, DisplayVersion
    Affected if Foxit PDF Reader appears in the installed programs list
  2. Identify the exact installed version
    Launch Foxit PDF Reader, then go to Help > About Foxit Reader, or right-click the application in Control Panel > Programs and Features to view the version number
    Affected if The version displayed is <= 12.1.2.15332 or < 12.1.0.1229
  3. Compare version against affected ranges
    If your version is 12.x, check if it is < 12.1.0.1229; if it is 11.x, check if it is <= 11.2.6.53790; if it is 10.x, check if it is <= 10.1.12.37872. Any of these conditions indicate an affected version.
    Affected if Installed version falls within any of these ranges: <= 10.1.12.37872, >= 11.0.0 and <= 11.2.6.53790, >= 12.0.0 and <= 12.1.2.15332, or < 12.1.0.1229 (for version 12.0.0.0601 and above)

A user is affected if Foxit PDF Reader is installed and the version number matches any of the documented vulnerable ranges, particularly versions prior to 12.1.0.1229 or 12.1.2.15332.

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 11.1.4.1121 / 12.1.0.1229 or later
Fixed in 11.1.4.112112.1.0.1229
Interim mitigation

Update Foxit PDF Reader to the latest version containing the security patch. Avoid opening untrusted PDF files or visiting malicious websites until the update is applied.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Foxit PDF Editor 11.1.4.1121 or later / Foxit PDF Reader 12.1.0.1229 or later (verify with vendor)

  1. Contact Foxit support or visit the official Foxit website to obtain the latest version of Foxit PDF Editor or Foxit PDF Reader
  2. Download and install the latest version that addresses CVE-2023-38111
  3. Alternatively, verify with Foxit that versions 11.1.4.1121 or higher for Pdf Editor and 12.1.0.1229 or higher for Pdf Reader contain the security fix
  4. Avoid opening PDF files from untrusted sources as a temporary mitigation until the patch is applied

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

Fix this in Pdf Editor Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
6.0 hours of engineering $1,040
Get the upgrade done

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Scan for this in your stack

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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-2023-38111 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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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