dbcve.org
Acrobat DcApplication · Adobe

CVE-2023-44357

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-11-16
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 20.005.30539 / 23.006.20380 or later.
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
Adobe Acrobat Reader versions 23.006.20360 (and earlier) and 20.005.30524 (and earlier) are affected by an out-of-bounds read vulnerability that could lead to disclosure of sensitive memory. An attacker could leverage this vulnerability to bypass mitigations such as ASLR. Exploitation of this issue requires user interaction in that a victim must open a malicious file.

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 Adobe Acrobat Reader affecting versions 23.006.20360 and earlier (2023 track) and 20.005.30524 and earlier (2020 track). The flaw allows disclosure of sensitive memory contents and could be leveraged to bypass ASLR security mitigations. Exploitation requires user interaction - the victim must open a maliciously crafted PDF file.

MitigationUpdate Adobe Acrobat Reader to version 23.006.20360 or later (2023 track) or 20.005.30524 or later (2020 track). Users should avoid opening untrusted or unexpected PDF files from unknown sources.

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
Acrobat DcApplication
Affected:>= 15.008.20082, < 23.006.20380
Acrobat Reader DcApplication
Affected:>= 15.008.20082, < 23.006.20380
AcrobatApplication
Affected:>= 20.001.30005, <= 20.005.30539
Acrobat ReaderApplication
Affected:>= 20.001.30005, < 20.005.30539

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. Locate installed Adobe Acrobat or Reader application
    Check Windows Programs and Features, or look for Adobe Acrobat Reader DC / Adobe Acrobat DC in the Start menu. Note the exact product name installed.
    Affected if Any Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader product is installed (the app must be one of the affected products)
  2. Determine installed version number
    For Windows: open Registry Editor and navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Adobe\Adobe Acrobat\DC\InstallPath (or version-specific folder like 23.0 or 20.0), or right-click the installed exe file and view Properties > Details > File Version. Alternatively, open the application and go to Help > About Adobe Acrobat Reader DC.
    Affected if A version number is retrieved from the installed Adobe product
  3. Compare version against affected 2023 track range
    If the version starts with 23.x, verify if it is less than 23.006.20380. Versions 23.006.20360 and earlier are vulnerable. Versions 23.006.20380 and later are fixed.
    Affected if Installed version is 23.x and is less than 23.006.20380 (or 23.006.20360 for the specific vulnerable build mentioned in the summary)
  4. Compare version against affected 2020 track range
    If the version starts with 20.x, verify if it is between 20.001.30005 and 20.005.30539 (inclusive). Versions 20.005.30524 and earlier are specifically noted as vulnerable in the summary.
    Affected if Installed version is 20.x and falls between 20.001.30005 and 20.005.30539 (inclusive), particularly versions 20.005.30524 and earlier

The environment is affected if Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader is installed and its version falls within the vulnerable ranges: 23.x versions below 23.006.20380, or 20.x versions at or below 20.005.30524 (specifically 20.001.30005 through 20.005.30539).

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 20.005.30539 / 23.006.20380 or later
Fixed in 20.005.3053923.006.20380
Interim mitigation

Update Adobe Acrobat Reader to version 23.006.20360 or later (2023 track) or 20.005.30524 or later (2020 track). Users should avoid opening untrusted or unexpected PDF files from unknown sources.

Recommended fix High confidence

Acrobat DC/Reader DC: version 23.006.20380 or later; Acrobat 2020/Reader 2020: version 20.005.30540 or later

  1. 1. Verify current Adobe Acrobat or Acrobat Reader version by opening the application, selecting 'Help' > 'About Adobe Acrobat Reader/Acrobat'
  2. 2. For Acrobat DC/Acrobat Reader DC users: Download and install version 23.006.20380 or later from the official Adobe website (get.adobe.com/reader or adobe.com)
  3. 3. For Acrobat 2020/Acrobat Reader 2020 users: Download and install version 20.005.30540 or later from the official Adobe website
  4. 4. After installation, verify the update by checking 'Help' > 'About' to confirm the version number matches or exceeds the fixed releases
  5. 5. Ensure automatic updates are enabled via 'Edit' > 'Preferences' > 'Updaters' to receive future security patches
Caveat Security updates typically have minimal functional changes; standard Adobe update compatibility applies

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

Fix this in Acrobat Dc Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
7.0 hours of engineering $1,240
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,984.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-44357 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

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-2023-44357 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

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