CVE-2025-21121
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 · uneditedInDesign Desktop versions ID20.0, ID19.5.1 and earlier are affected by an out-of-bounds write 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 confidenceAdobe InDesign Desktop versions ID20.0, ID19.5.1 and earlier contain an out-of-bounds write vulnerability that could allow arbitrary code execution. The attack vector requires a user to open a maliciously crafted InDesign file, giving the attacker code execution in the context of the current user.
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< 19.5.2= 20.0CVSS 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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Determine installed InDesign versionOpen Adobe InDesign and navigate to Help > About InDesign, or use the command line to check the application version (typically found in the application properties or via 'indesign -version' if supported)Affected if The installed version is ID20.0 or ID19.5.1 or earlier (any version below 19.5.2)
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Confirm InDesign Desktop is installedVerify that Adobe InDesign Desktop application is present on the system by checking Program Files or Program Files (x86) for an InDesign folder, or search for InDesign.exeAffected if InDesign is installed and the version falls within the affected range (< 19.5.2 or = 20.0)
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Identify the specific version numberLocate the exact version string in the application's About dialog or executable properties, noting whether it shows 20.0, 19.5.1, or an earlier 19.x releaseAffected if The version matches ID20.0, ID19.5.1, or any version prior to 19.5.2
A user is affected if Adobe InDesign Desktop version 20.0, 19.5.1, or any version earlier than 19.5.2 is installed on their system.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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 · scoped19.5.2
Users should not open untrusted or unexpected InDesign files. Organizations should deploy the Adobe security update immediately once released, prioritizing systems with InDesign installations.
InDesign 19.5.2 or later; InDesign 20.x where x>0
- 1. Close all Adobe InDesign instances
- 2. Open Adobe Creative Cloud desktop application or navigate to https://helpx.adobe.com/indesign/release-note/indesign-release-notes.html
- 3. Locate Adobe InDesign in your installed applications
- 4. Update InDesign to version 19.5.2 or later (for 19.x line) OR to a version newer than 20.0 (for 20.x line)
- 5. Verify the update completed successfully
- 6. Confirm the installed version matches a fixed release (19.5.2+ or 20.x where x>0)
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2025-21121 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2025-21121 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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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.
- 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