dbcve.org
Pdf EditorApplication · Foxit

CVE-2024-12753

HIGH · 7.3 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-12-30
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 2024.3.0.26795 or later.
See remediation →
73/100
Remediation priority · Elevated

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 Link Following Local Privilege Escalation Vulnerability. This vulnerability allows local attackers to escalate privileges on affected installations of Foxit PDF Reader. An attacker must first obtain the ability to execute low-privileged code on the target system in order to exploit this vulnerability. The specific flaw exists within the product installer. By creating a junction, an attacker can abuse the installer process to create an arbitrary file. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to escalate privileges and execute arbitrary code in the context of SYSTEM. Was ZDI-CAN-25408.

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

This is a local privilege escalation vulnerability in the Foxit PDF Reader installer. Attackers exploit a link-following flaw by creating a Windows filesystem junction that manipulates the installer into creating an arbitrary file with elevated SYSTEM privileges, allowing execution of arbitrary code in SYSTEM context.

MitigationApply the vendor-supplied patch or update Foxit PDF Reader to the latest version to remediate this installer vulnerability.

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:>= 11.0.0, <= 11.2.11.54113>= 12.0.0, <= 12.1.8.15703>= 13.0.0, <= 13.1.4.23147>= 2023.1.0.15510, <= 2023.3.0.23028>= 2024.1.0.23997, <= 2024.3.0.26795
Pdf ReaderApplication
Affected:<= 2024.3.0.26795

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
Low
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/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 if Foxit PDF Reader or Editor is installed
    Open Windows Settings > Apps & features, or run 'Get-ItemProperty HKLM:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\* | Select-Object DisplayName, DisplayVersion' in PowerShell to list installed applications
    Affected if Foxit PDF Reader or Foxit PDF Editor appears in the installed applications list
  2. Identify the installed Foxit version
    In the Apps & features list, note the version number shown next to Foxit PDF Reader or Foxit PDF Editor. Alternatively, check the registry key HKLM\Software\FoxitSoftware\Foxit Reader\CurrentVersion for the Version value
    Affected if The installed version matches any of the affected ranges: 11.0.0 to 11.2.11.54113, 12.0.0 to 12.1.8.15703, 13.0.0 to 13.1.4.23147, 2023.1.0.15510 to 2023.3.0.23028, 2024.1.0.23997 to 2024.3.0.26795, or any version of Reader up to and including 2024.3.0.26795
  3. Determine if the vulnerability is applicable
    This is an installer vulnerability that manifests during the installation or repair process when a specially crafted filesystem junction exists. Check whether users in your environment have permission to create directory junctions in writable locations, and whether installation is performed with elevated privileges
    Affected if Users with limited privileges can place a filesystem junction in a location that the Foxit installer will follow during installation, repair, or update operations

A system is affected if Foxit PDF Reader or Editor with a version matching the affected ranges is installed and the installer can be triggered with SYSTEM privileges while a malicious junction exists in the filesystem.

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.

From vendor data
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 2024.3.0.26795
Interim mitigation

Apply the vendor-supplied patch or update Foxit PDF Reader to the latest version to remediate this installer vulnerability.

Fix this in Pdf Editor Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,600
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,560.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2024-12753 — 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-2024-12753 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