CVE-2026-21325 – CVE-2026-21325 is an out-of-bounds read vulnera... (How to Fix)

Q: What is the severity of CVE-2026-21325?

CVE-2026-21325 has a CVSS score of 7.8 (HIGH). CVE-2026-21325 is an out-of-bounds read vulnerability in Adobe After Effects that could allow arbitrary code execution when a user opens a malicious file. Attackers could exploit this to run code with the victim's privileges. All users of affected After Effects versions are at risk if they open untrusted project files.

📋 TL;DR

CVE-2026-21325 is an out-of-bounds read vulnerability in Adobe After Effects that could allow arbitrary code execution when a user opens a malicious file. Attackers could exploit this to run code with the victim's privileges. All users of affected After Effects versions are at risk if they open untrusted project files.

💻 Affected Systems

Products:

Adobe After Effects

Versions: 25.6 and earlier

Operating Systems: Windows, macOS

Default Config Vulnerable: ⚠️ Yes

Notes: All default installations of affected versions are vulnerable. No special configuration required for exploitation.

📦 What is this software?

After Effects by Adobe

View all CVEs affecting After Effects →

⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact

🔴

Worst Case

Full system compromise through remote code execution leading to data theft, ransomware deployment, or persistent backdoor installation.

🟠

Likely Case

Local privilege escalation or system compromise when users open malicious project files from untrusted sources.

🟢

If Mitigated

No impact if users only open trusted files and have proper security controls.

🌐 Internet-Facing: LOW - Exploitation requires user interaction and file download/opening.

🏢 Internal Only: MEDIUM - Internal users could be targeted via phishing with malicious attachments.

🎯 Exploit Status

Public PoC: ✅ No

Weaponized: UNKNOWN

Unauthenticated Exploit: ✅ No

Complexity: MEDIUM

Exploitation requires user interaction (opening malicious file) and crafting a specific file format.

🛠️ Fix & Mitigation

✅ Official Fix

Patch Version: 25.7 or later

Vendor Advisory: https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/after_effects/apsb26-15.html

Restart Required: Yes

Instructions:

1. Open Adobe Creative Cloud application. 2. Navigate to 'Apps' tab. 3. Find After Effects and click 'Update'. 4. Restart After Effects after update completes.

🔧 Temporary Workarounds

Restrict file opening

all

Configure system policies to prevent opening untrusted .aep files

Application sandboxing

all

Run After Effects in restricted/sandboxed environment

🧯 If You Can't Patch

Implement strict file handling policies: only open project files from trusted sources
Use application whitelisting to restrict After Effects execution to specific users

🔍 How to Verify

Check if Vulnerable:

Check After Effects version: Help > About After Effects. If version is 25.6 or earlier, system is vulnerable.

Check Version:

On Windows: wmic product where name="Adobe After Effects" get version. On macOS: /Applications/Adobe\ After\ Effects\ */Adobe\ After\ Effects.app/Contents/Info.plist

Verify Fix Applied:

Verify After Effects version is 25.7 or later in Help > About After Effects.

📡 Detection & Monitoring

Log Indicators:

Application crashes with memory access violations
Unexpected file opens from untrusted sources

Network Indicators:

Downloads of suspicious .aep files from untrusted domains

SIEM Query:

process_name:"AfterFX.exe" AND (event_type:"crash" OR file_path:"*.aep")

📊 Metadata

CVE ID: CVE-2026-21325

CVSS v3 Score: 7.8 (HIGH)

CVSS Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

CWE: CWE-125

EPSS Score: 0.01% exploit probability (1.8th percentile)

Published: February 10, 2026

Last Updated: February 11, 2026

🔗 References

https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/after_effects/apsb26-15.html Vendor Advisory

📤 Share & Export

📄 Export Markdown 📋 Export JSON

🔗 Related Vulnerabilities

If you're affected by CVE-2026-21325, you might also want to check these: