CVE-2025-54281
📋 TL;DR
Adobe Framemaker versions 2020.9, 2022.7 and earlier contain a use-after-free vulnerability that could allow attackers to execute arbitrary code when a user opens a malicious file. This affects users of Adobe Framemaker who open untrusted documents. Successful exploitation requires user interaction but could lead to full system compromise.
💻 Affected Systems
- Adobe Framemaker
📦 What is this software?
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete system compromise with attacker gaining the same privileges as the current user, potentially leading to data theft, ransomware deployment, or lateral movement.
Likely Case
Local code execution allowing malware installation, credential theft, or data exfiltration from the affected system.
If Mitigated
No impact if users only open trusted documents from verified sources and proper security controls are in place.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires user interaction (opening a malicious file) and successful exploitation depends on bypassing ASLR/DEP protections.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Update to Framemaker 2020.10 or 2022.8 or later
Vendor Advisory: https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/framemaker/apsb25-101.html
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Open Adobe Framemaker. 2. Go to Help > Check for Updates. 3. Follow prompts to install available updates. 4. Restart Framemaker after installation completes.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Restrict document opening
allConfigure Framemaker to only open documents from trusted locations or implement application whitelisting
Sandbox execution
allRun Framemaker in a sandboxed environment or virtual machine to limit potential damage
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement application control policies to restrict Framemaker from opening untrusted documents
- Deploy endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions to monitor for suspicious document opening behavior
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check Framemaker version via Help > About Adobe Framemaker. If version is 2020.9 or earlier, or 2022.7 or earlier, the system is vulnerable.Check Version:
On Windows: Check Help > About Adobe Framemaker. On macOS: Check Framemaker > About Framemaker.Verify Fix Applied:
Verify version is 2020.10 or later for 2020 branch, or 2022.8 or later for 2022 branch.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual process creation from Framemaker.exe
- Multiple document opening failures
- Memory access violations in application logs
Network Indicators:
- Unexpected outbound connections from Framemaker process
- DNS requests to suspicious domains after document opening
SIEM Query:
process_name:Framemaker.exe AND (event_id:4688 OR parent_process:Framemaker.exe) AND command_line:*.fm OR process_name:Framemaker.exe AND memory_violation