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Pdf ToolsApplication · Pdf Xchange

CVE-2023-42072

MEDIUM · 5.5 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 →
58/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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 JPC File Parsing Out-Of-Bounds Read Information Disclosure Vulnerability. This vulnerability allows remote attackers to disclose sensitive information 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 JPC 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 object. An attacker can leverage this in conjunction with other vulnerabilities to execute arbitrary code in the context of the current process. Was ZDI-CAN-21311.

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 · moderate confidence

This is an out-of-bounds read vulnerability in PDF-XChange Editor's JPC (JPEG-2000 Code Stream) file parser. The vulnerability stems from insufficient validation of user-supplied data during JPC file parsing, allowing an attacker to read past the end of an allocated memory object and disclose sensitive information. While primarily an information disclosure issue, it can be chained with other vulnerabilities to achieve arbitrary code execution in the current process context.

MitigationUsers should avoid opening untrusted JPC files or visiting malicious pages until a vendor patch is available; organizations can implement defense-in-depth by blocking JPC file attachments at email gateways or proxies as a compensating control.

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
None
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N

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 if PDF-XChange Editor is installed
    Open Windows Control Panel > Programs and Features, or use PowerShell: Get-WmiObject -Class Win32_Product | Select-Object Name, Version
    Affected if PDF-XChange Editor is installed and version equals 9.5.368.0
  2. Check if PDF-XChange Pdf Tools is installed
    Open Windows Control Panel > Programs and Features, or use PowerShell: Get-WmiObject -Class Win32_Product | Select-Object Name, Version
    Affected if PDF-XChange Pdf Tools is installed and version equals 9.5.368.0
  3. Verify the exact version number of PDF-XChange products
    Right-click on the installed application executable, select Properties, and check the File Version field; alternatively check the Windows registry under HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall for the product entry
    Affected if The installed version is exactly 9.5.368.0 (version equality, not range)

You are affected if either PDF-XChange Editor or PDF-XChange Pdf Tools version 9.5.368.0 is installed on your system and you open or process JPC (JPEG-2000) files.

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

Users should avoid opening untrusted JPC files or visiting malicious pages until a vendor patch is available; organizations can implement defense-in-depth by blocking JPC file attachments at email gateways or proxies as a compensating control.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Latest version of PDF-XChange Editor (contact vendor for specific security release)

  1. Navigate to the official Tracker Software website at www.tracker-software.com
  2. Locate the PDF-XChange Editor download page
  3. Download and install the latest version of PDF-XChange Editor
  4. Verify the installed version is newer than 9.5.368.0
Caveat Review release notes for any functionality changes between versions

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

Fix this in Pdf Tools Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,980
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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-2023-42072 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