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Pdf EditorApplication · Foxit

CVE-2023-38119

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.0 Published 2024-05-03
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 12.1.2.15332 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 AcroForm signature Out-Of-Bounds Read 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 signature fields. The issue results from the lack of proper validation of user-supplied data, which can result in a read past the end of an allocated buffer. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to execute code in the context of the current process. Was ZDI-CAN-21326.

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

Out-of-bounds read vulnerability in Foxit PDF Reader's AcroForm signature field handling due to lack of proper validation of user-supplied data, allowing read past end of allocated buffer and potential remote code execution in current process context.

MitigationUpdate Foxit PDF Reader to latest patched version; avoid opening untrusted or unknown PDF files; disable JavaScript execution in Foxit Reader as a defense-in-depth measure.

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
Pdf ReaderApplication
Affected:<= 12.1.2.15332

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. Identify installed Foxit product
    Open Foxit PDF Reader or Editor, go to Help > About, or check Programs and Features in Windows Control Panel for the installed version number
    Affected if The installed version is Foxit Pdf Reader <= 12.1.2.15332, or Foxit Pdf Editor in ranges <= 10.1.12.37872, >= 11.0.0 and <= 11.2.6.53790, or >= 12.0.0 and <= 12.1.2.15332
  2. Confirm product type
    Verify whether the installed product is Foxit PDF Reader or Foxit PDF Editor, as both have different affected version ranges
    Affected if Product is Foxit PDF Reader in any version up to and including 12.1.2.15332
  3. Determine if AcroForm signatures are processed
    Open a PDF document in the Foxit application, then check if the document contains AcroForm signature fields by viewing the form fields or signature properties
    Affected if A PDF with AcroForm signature fields is opened in a vulnerable version of Foxit, triggering the out-of-bounds read during signature field parsing

A user is affected if they have Foxit PDF Reader version 12.1.2.15332 or earlier, or Foxit PDF Editor in one of the specified vulnerable version ranges, and open a PDF containing malicious AcroForm signature field data.

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 a release after 12.1.2.15332
Interim mitigation

Update Foxit PDF Reader to latest patched version; avoid opening untrusted or unknown PDF files; disable JavaScript execution in Foxit Reader as a defense-in-depth measure.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Foxit PDF Reader 12.1.3 or later / Foxit PDF Editor 10.1.13 or later / Foxit PDF Editor 11.2.7 or later / Foxit PDF Editor 12.1.3 or later

  1. 1. Identify the currently installed Foxit product (PDF Reader or PDF Editor) and note the exact version number from the application's Help > About menu
  2. 2. Download the latest version of the affected product from the official Foxit website at www.foxit.com
  3. 3. Close any running instances of Foxit PDF Reader or PDF Editor
  4. 4. Run the installer for the latest downloaded version and follow the prompts to complete the upgrade
  5. 5. Verify the installation was successful by checking Help > About to confirm the new version number
  6. 6. Re-open any previously used PDF documents to ensure functionality is intact
Caveat Standard version upgrades typically retain user settings and preferences; however, backing up important PDFs before upgrading is recommended as a precautionary measure

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

Fix this in Pdf Editor Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation1.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
5.0 hours of engineering $910
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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-2023-38119 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