CVE-2023-38077
📋 TL;DR
This vulnerability in Kofax Power PDF allows attackers to disclose sensitive information by tricking users into opening malicious U3D files. The flaw exists in how the software parses U3D files without proper bounds checking, potentially enabling information disclosure that could be combined with other vulnerabilities for code execution. Users of affected Kofax Power PDF versions are at risk.
💻 Affected Systems
- Kofax Power PDF
📦 What is this software?
Power Pdf by Tungstenautomation
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Information disclosure combined with other vulnerabilities could lead to arbitrary code execution in the context of the current user process, potentially resulting in full system compromise.
Likely Case
Sensitive information disclosure from the application's memory, which could include document contents, credentials, or other data being processed by Power PDF.
If Mitigated
Limited information disclosure with no code execution if proper memory protections are in place and the vulnerability cannot be chained with other flaws.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires user interaction to open malicious U3D files. The vulnerability alone provides information disclosure, but could be chained with other vulnerabilities for code execution.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Not specified in provided references, but Kofax has released updates
Vendor Advisory: https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-23-955/
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Check current Power PDF version. 2. Download latest update from Kofax official website. 3. Install the update. 4. Restart system if prompted. 5. Verify update installation.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable U3D file processing
windowsPrevent Power PDF from processing U3D files by modifying file associations or using application controls
Use Windows Group Policy or registry to modify file associations for .u3d files
User awareness training
allEducate users not to open U3D files from untrusted sources
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement application whitelisting to prevent execution of malicious files
- Use email filtering and web proxies to block U3D file attachments and downloads
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check Power PDF version against Kofax security advisories. If using unpatched version and processing U3D files, assume vulnerable.Check Version:
Open Power PDF → Help → About Power PDFVerify Fix Applied:
Verify Power PDF version is updated to latest release from Kofax official sources📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Power PDF crash logs when processing U3D files
- Unexpected memory access errors in application logs
Network Indicators:
- Downloads of U3D files from untrusted sources
- Email attachments with U3D files
SIEM Query:
Process:PowerPDF.exe AND (FileExtension:u3d OR FileName:*.u3d)