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IndesignApplication · Adobe

CVE-2024-49545

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-12-10
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 19.5.1 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
InDesign Desktop versions ID19.5, ID18.5.4 and earlier are affected by a Heap-based Buffer Overflow vulnerability that could result in arbitrary code execution in the context of the current user. 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 · high confidence

Adobe InDesign Desktop versions ID19.5, ID18.5.4 and earlier contain a heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability that can be triggered when a user opens a maliciously crafted InDesign file. Successful exploitation allows arbitrary code execution within the security context of the current user, but requires victim interaction (opening the malicious file).

MitigationUpdate InDesign to the latest patched version provided by Adobe. Avoid opening InDesign files from untrusted or 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
IndesignApplication
Affected:<= 18.5.4>= 19.0, < 19.5.1

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 if Adobe InDesign is installed
    On Windows, look for InDesign in Program Files or check the registry under HKLM\SOFTWARE\Adobe\InDesign\InstallPath. On macOS, check /Applications/Adobe InDesign or ~/Applications/Adobe InDesign.
    Affected if InDesign is not installed on the system
  2. Determine the installed InDesign version
    Open InDesign and go to Help > About InDesign, or on Windows check the file version of ID.exe in the installation folder, or on macOS right-click the app and select Get Info to view the version.
    Affected if Unable to determine the version from the installation
  3. Compare the installed version against affected ranges
    Check if the version matches either: 18.5.4 or earlier (18.x series), or 19.0 through 19.5.0 (19.x series). The fixed version is 19.5.1 and later.
    Affected if The installed version is 18.5.4 or earlier, OR is 19.0 through 19.5.0 (meaning it is vulnerable)
  4. Verify the vulnerability trigger condition
    Confirm that the vulnerability requires opening a maliciously crafted .indd file, which is a file that would need to be obtained from an untrusted source.
    Affected if Users routinely open InDesign files from untrusted or unknown sources (this condition increases exposure but does not change version-based vulnerability status)

A system is affected by this CVE if Adobe InDesign Desktop version 18.5.4 or earlier, or version 19.0 through 19.5.0 is installed, regardless of whether any malicious file has been opened.

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 19.5.1 or later
Fixed in 19.5.1
Interim mitigation

Update InDesign to the latest patched version provided by Adobe. Avoid opening InDesign files from untrusted or unknown sources.

Recommended fix High confidence

InDesign 19.5.1 or later (for both 18.x and 19.x branches)

  1. 1. Close Adobe InDesign if currently running
  2. 2. Back up any important InDesign documents and preferences
  3. 3. Uninstall the current version of Adobe InDesign from the system
  4. 4. Download Adobe InDesign version 19.5.1 or later from the official Adobe website (helpx.adobe.com)
  5. 5. Run the installer for InDesign 19.5.1
  6. 6. Follow the on-screen installation prompts to complete the installation
  7. 7. After installation, launch InDesign to verify it runs without errors
  8. 8. Do not open any untrusted or unknown InDesign files (.indd, .idml) from unverified sources
Caveat Upgrading from version 18.x to 19.x may introduce UI changes, workflow adjustments, and compatibility differences with older plugins or scripts; thoroughly test critical workflows before production use

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

Fix this in Indesign Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Implementation1.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
4.0 hours of engineering $750
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,200.

Scan for this in your stack

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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-2024-49545 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