CVE-2024-49530
📋 TL;DR
A use-after-free vulnerability in Adobe Acrobat Reader allows arbitrary code execution when a user opens a malicious PDF file. This affects multiple versions of Acrobat Reader DC and Acrobat Reader 2020. Successful exploitation gives attackers the same privileges as the current user.
💻 Affected Systems
- Adobe Acrobat Reader DC
- Adobe Acrobat Reader 2020
📦 What is this software?
Acrobat by Adobe
Acrobat by Adobe
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Full system compromise with attacker gaining the same privileges as the user, potentially leading to data theft, ransomware deployment, or lateral movement within the network.
Likely Case
Malware installation or data exfiltration from the compromised user's system, with potential for credential theft and further network access.
If Mitigated
Limited impact due to application sandboxing or restricted user privileges, potentially containing the exploit to the application context.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires user interaction (opening malicious file). No public exploit code available at time of advisory.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: DC: 24.005.20308 or later; 2020: 20.005.30731 or later
Vendor Advisory: https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/acrobat/apsb24-92.html
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Open Adobe Acrobat Reader. 2. Go to Help > Check for Updates. 3. Follow prompts to install available updates. 4. Restart the application. Alternatively, download latest version from Adobe website.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable JavaScript in Adobe Reader
allPrevents JavaScript-based exploitation vectors
Edit > Preferences > JavaScript > Uncheck 'Enable Acrobat JavaScript'
Use Protected View
allOpens untrusted files in sandboxed mode
File > Preferences > Security (Enhanced) > Enable Protected View for all files
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Restrict PDF file opening to trusted sources only
- Implement application whitelisting to block unauthorized PDF readers
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check Help > About Adobe Acrobat Reader and compare version to affected rangesCheck Version:
On Windows: wmic product where name="Adobe Acrobat Reader DC" get versionVerify Fix Applied:
Verify version is 24.005.20308 or later for DC, or 20.005.30731 or later for 2020📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unexpected Acrobat Reader crashes
- Suspicious child processes spawned from Acrobat.exe
Network Indicators:
- Outbound connections from Acrobat Reader to unknown IPs
- DNS requests for suspicious domains after PDF opening
SIEM Query:
process_name:"AcroRd32.exe" OR process_name:"Acrobat.exe" AND (event_id:1 OR parent_process_name:explorer.exe) AND command_line:"*.pdf"