CVE-2023-38114
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 · uneditedFoxit PDF Reader AcroForm Doc Object 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 Doc 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-21085.
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 confidenceThis is a use-after-free vulnerability in Foxit PDF Reader's handling of AcroForm Doc objects. The flaw results from the lack of validating an object's existence prior to performing operations on it, allowing an attacker to exploit freed memory and achieve remote code execution in the context of the current process.
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<= 10.1.12.37872>= 11.0.0, <= 11.2.6.53790>= 12.0.0, <= 12.1.2.15332<= 12.1.2.15332CVSS 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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Verify Foxit PDF Reader is installedCheck for FoxitReader.exe in typical installation paths: C:\Program Files\Foxit\Foxit Reader\ or C:\Program Files (x86)\Foxit\Foxit Reader\. You can also search for the executable using: dir /s C:\FoxitReader.exe 2>nulAffected if Foxit PDF Reader executable is found on the system
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Determine the installed Foxit PDF Reader versionRight-click on FoxitReader.exe, select Properties, then view the Details tab for the Version field. Alternatively, run: wmic datafile where "name='C:\Program Files\Foxit\Foxit Reader\FoxitReader.exe'" get versionAffected if A version number is returned
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Compare installed version against affected rangesCompare the detected version number to these vulnerable ranges: versions <= 12.1.2.15332. For Foxit Pdf Editor, also check: <= 10.1.12.37872, >= 11.0.0 through <= 11.2.6.53790, and >= 12.0.0 through <= 12.1.2.15332Affected if The installed version falls within any of the listed vulnerable version ranges
A user is affected if Foxit PDF Reader (or Foxit PDF Editor) is installed with a version number that falls within the specified vulnerable ranges.
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.
From vendor dataUpdate Foxit PDF Reader to the vendor-patched version. Avoid opening untrusted or malicious PDF files from unknown sources.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation3.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-38114 — 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-2023-38114 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
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data