CVE-2024-30312
📋 TL;DR
This CVE describes an out-of-bounds read vulnerability in Adobe Acrobat Reader that could allow an attacker to read sensitive memory contents. Exploitation requires a victim to open a malicious PDF file, potentially enabling ASLR bypass and information disclosure. Users of Adobe Acrobat Reader versions 20.005.30574, 24.002.20736 and earlier are affected.
💻 Affected Systems
- Adobe Acrobat Reader DC
- Adobe Acrobat Reader
📦 What is this software?
Acrobat by Adobe
Acrobat by Adobe
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
An attacker could bypass ASLR protections and potentially chain this with other vulnerabilities to achieve remote code execution or extract sensitive information from memory.
Likely Case
Information disclosure leading to memory content leakage, which could be used to facilitate more sophisticated attacks by bypassing security mitigations.
If Mitigated
Limited impact with proper security controls like application whitelisting, network segmentation, and user awareness training preventing malicious file execution.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires user interaction (opening malicious file). No public exploit code identified at time of analysis.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Check Adobe Security Bulletin APSB24-29 for latest patched versions
Vendor Advisory: https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/acrobat/apsb24-29.html
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Open Adobe Acrobat Reader
2. Navigate to Help > Check for Updates
3. Follow prompts to install available updates
4. Restart the application when prompted
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable JavaScript in Adobe Reader
allDisabling JavaScript can prevent exploitation of many PDF-based vulnerabilities
Edit > Preferences > JavaScript > Uncheck 'Enable Acrobat JavaScript'
Use Protected View
allEnable Protected View for files from potentially unsafe locations
Edit > Preferences > Security (Enhanced) > Enable Protected View for all files from potentially unsafe locations
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement application whitelisting to prevent execution of unauthorized PDF readers
- Use network segmentation to isolate systems running vulnerable versions from critical assets
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check Adobe Acrobat Reader version via Help > About Adobe Acrobat Reader DCCheck Version:
On Windows: wmic product where name="Adobe Acrobat Reader DC" get versionVerify Fix Applied:
Verify version is newer than 20.005.30574 for continuous track or 24.002.20736 for classic track📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual PDF file access patterns
- Multiple crash reports from Adobe Reader
- Process creation events for Adobe Reader with suspicious parent processes
Network Indicators:
- Downloads of PDF files from untrusted sources
- Unusual outbound connections following PDF file opening
SIEM Query:
source="*adobe*" AND (event_type="crash" OR event_type="error") AND process_name="AcroRd32.exe" OR process_name="Acrobat.exe"