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Pdf ToolsApplication · Pdf Xchange

CVE-2023-42055

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-05-03
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
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
PDF-XChange Editor U3D File Parsing Out-Of-Bounds Read Remote Code Execution Vulnerability. This vulnerability allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code on affected installations of PDF-XChange Editor. 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 U3D files. 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-20928.

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

PDF-XChange Editor contains an out-of-bounds read vulnerability in its U3D (Universal 3D) file parsing functionality. The vulnerability stems from insufficient validation of user-supplied data during U3D file parsing, allowing an attacker to read beyond the boundaries of an allocated memory buffer. This out-of-bounds read can be leveraged to achieve remote code execution within the context of the current process.

MitigationApply vendor-supplied patches for PDF-XChange Editor when available. Until patched, avoid opening untrusted PDF files or disable/enable U3D content rendering in the application settings.

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 ToolsApplication
Affected:= 9.5.368.0
Pdf Xchange EditorApplication
Affected:= 9.5.368.0

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:3.1/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. Check PDF-XChange Editor version
    Open PDF-XChange Editor, go to Help > About, or right-click the executable in Program Files > Properties > Details to see the version number
    Affected if Version is 9.5.368.0 exactly
  2. Check PDF-XChange PDF Tools version
    Locate the PDF Tools application in Program Files, right-click the executable, go to Properties > Details to view version
    Affected if Version is 9.5.368.0 exactly
  3. Verify U3D rendering is enabled
    In PDF-XChange Editor, go to File > Preferences > Security > Enable U3D content rendering (or check if the U3D/3D viewer module is not disabled)
    Affected if U3D content rendering is enabled and a vulnerable version is installed

You are affected if you have version 9.5.368.0 of either PDF-XChange Editor or PDF-XChange PDF Tools installed AND U3D/3D content rendering is enabled in the application settings.

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
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply vendor-supplied patches for PDF-XChange Editor when available. Until patched, avoid opening untrusted PDF files or disable/enable U3D content rendering in the application settings.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

PDF-XChange Editor version > 9.5.368.0 (check tracker-software.com for latest stable release)

  1. 1. Visit www.tracker-software.com and navigate to the PDF-XChange Editor download page
  2. 2. Download the latest version of PDF-XChange Editor (version newer than 9.5.368.0)
  3. 3. Uninstall the current version 9.5.368.0 from the system
  4. 4. Install the newly downloaded version
  5. 5. Verify the installation completed successfully
  6. 6. Ensure users are advised to avoid opening untrusted U3D files from unknown sources until the patch is applied
Caveat Minor: Standard upgrade - review release notes for any interface changes in newer versions

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

Fix this in Pdf Tools Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation3.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
12.0 hours of engineering $2,150
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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-2023-42055 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