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After EffectsApplication · Adobe

CVE-2026-21321

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-02-10
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 25.6.4 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
After Effects versions 25.6 and earlier are affected by an Integer Overflow or Wraparound 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 · moderate confidence

After Effects versions 25.6 and earlier contain an integer overflow or wraparound vulnerability. When processing malicious files, the integer overflow can cause memory corruption leading to arbitrary code execution in the context of the current user.

MitigationUpdate After Effects to a version newer than 25.6. Until patched, warn users not to open untrusted or unexpected 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
After EffectsApplication
Affected:< 25.6.4

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. Locate After Effects installation
    Check the installed applications on the system for Adobe After Effects. On Windows, look in Program Files/Adobe; on macOS, check /Applications for Adobe After Effects.app.
    Affected if After Effects is installed on the system
  2. Identify the installed version number
    Open After Effects and navigate to Help > About After Effects, or run the executable with a version flag. On Windows, the version may also be visible in the application properties via Control Panel > Programs and Features.
    Affected if The version displayed cannot be determined or shows 25.6.x or earlier
  3. Compare version against affected range
    Check if the installed version is 25.6.4 or higher. Versions below 25.6.4 (including 25.6, 25.5, 25.0, and all earlier releases) are vulnerable.
    Affected if The installed version is earlier than 25.6.4 (e.g., 25.6, 25.5, 25.0, 24.x, etc.)
  4. Determine exposure to malicious files
    Assess whether the After Effects installation processes files from untrusted or unknown sources, as the vulnerability is triggered when processing specially crafted malicious files.
    Affected if Users routinely open project files, footage, or assets from untrusted or unknown sources with the affected version

If the installed After Effects version is lower than 25.6.4 and the application is used to process files from untrusted sources, the environment is affected by this vulnerability.

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 25.6.4 or later
Fixed in 25.6.4
Interim mitigation

Update After Effects to a version newer than 25.6. Until patched, warn users not to open untrusted or unexpected files from unknown sources.

Recommended fix High confidence

After Effects 25.6.4

  1. Close After Effects completely before starting the update process
  2. Open the Adobe Creative Cloud desktop application on your system
  3. Locate After Effects in the Applications section within Creative Cloud
  4. Click on the Update button or 'Update Now' to install the available update
  5. Alternatively, visit the official Adobe downloads page at helpx.adobe.com and download After Effects version 25.6.4 or later
  6. Run the installer and follow the on-screen prompts to complete the update
  7. Restart your computer after the update completes
  8. Launch After Effects and verify the version number shows 25.6.4 or higher

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

Fix this in After Effects Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
6.0 hours of engineering $1,090
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,744.

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-2026-21321 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