dbcve.org
IndesignApplication · Adobe

CVE-2026-27284

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-04-14
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 20.5.3 / 21.3 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 20.5.2, 21.2 and earlier are affected by an out-of-bounds read vulnerability when parsing a crafted file, which could result in a read past the end of an allocated memory structure. An attacker could leverage this vulnerability to execute code 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

This is an out-of-bounds read vulnerability in Adobe InDesign Desktop where parsing a maliciously crafted file allows reading past the end of an allocated memory structure. Successful exploitation enables arbitrary code execution in the context of the current user, but requires the victim to open a specially crafted file.

MitigationAvoid opening InDesign files from untrusted or unknown sources. Apply the vendor patch when released by updating to a version newer than 20.5.2 or 21.2.

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:< 20.5.3>= 21.0, < 21.3

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 installed InDesign version on Windows
    Open Control Panel > Programs and Features, locate Adobe InDesign in the list, and note the version column. Alternatively, open InDesign and go to Help > About Adobe InDesign to see the exact version number.
    Affected if The version shown is earlier than 20.5.3, or is 21.0, 21.1, or 21.2 (versions 21.0 through 21.2 are all affected)
  2. Check installed InDesign version on macOS
    Open Finder, navigate to Applications, right-click Adobe InDesign, select Get Info, and note the version number shown. Alternatively, open InDesign and go to InDesign menu > About Adobe InDesign.
    Affected if The version shown is earlier than 20.5.3, or is 21.0, 21.1, or 21.2 (versions 21.0 through 21.2 are all affected)
  3. Identify whether untrusted files are opened
    Review your workflow to determine if you open InDesign files (.indd, .idml, .indt) from sources outside your organization, unknown senders, or unverified downloads.
    Affected if You regularly open InDesign files from untrusted or unknown sources without verification
  4. Check for recently opened InDesign files
    In InDesign, go to File > Open Recent to view recently opened documents. Review the origin of these files if file access logging is available on your system.
    Affected if Any recently opened files originated from untrusted or unknown sources

You are affected if your installed InDesign version is less than 20.5.3, or is any version from 21.0 through 21.2, and you open InDesign files from untrusted sources.

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 20.5.3 / 21.3 or later
Fixed in 20.5.321.3
Interim mitigation

Avoid opening InDesign files from untrusted or unknown sources. Apply the vendor patch when released by updating to a version newer than 20.5.2 or 21.2.

Recommended fix High confidence

InDesign version 20.5.3 or later for 20.x branch; version 21.3 or later for 21.x branch

  1. Check current InDesign version via Help > About InDesign (Windows) or InDesign > About InDesign (macOS)
  2. If version is 20.x and less than 20.5.3, or version is 21.x and less than 21.3, an update is required
  3. Download the appropriate fixed version from the official Adobe website: version 20.5.3 for the 20.x branch or version 21.3 (or latest) for the 21.x branch
  4. Run the Adobe Update installer and follow prompts to complete the update
  5. After installation, verify the version matches the fixed release (20.5.3 or 21.3 or later)
Caveat Standard Adobe update considerations apply - ensure compatibility with existing workflows and third-party plugins before updating production systems

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

Fix this in Indesign Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,980
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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-2026-27284 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