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Threats / Adobe / CVE-2009-0927
CVE-2009-0927 · EUVD no mirror located · GCVE no mirror located Verified 2026-06-22

Adobe Reader and Acrobat vulnerability

Stack-based buffer overflow in Adobe Reader and Acrobat enables remote code execution when processing malicious documents.

Verdict

Today item — known-exploited.

A stack buffer overflow in Adobe Reader and Acrobat allows attackers to execute arbitrary code remotely by crafting malicious PDF or document files. The vulnerability has been actively exploited in the wild.

CISA KEV Yes · 2022-03-253EPSS 0.96598 (verify live)4
01

Is it exploitable?

— the evidence, ranked above the score
Reported exploitation
7 independent public reports of in-the-wild exploitation are cataloged.Distinct reporting sources (vendor, incident response, government); open them for the underlying claims.
Exploited in the wild
Listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog (added 2022-03-25).
CISA KEV ↗Confirmed
Probability (EPSS)
EPSS 0.96598 — modeled likelihood of exploitation activity.EPSS is a daily-changing model output — open the source for today's value.
Severity / affected
Affected: Adobe, Reader and Acrobat. Confirm exact fixed builds in the vendor advisory.
NVD ↗Reported
Weakness (CWE)
Mapped to CWE-20 Improper Input Validation.CWE assignment from the public NVD record; the weakness class drives how the flaw is exploited.
NVD ↗Reported
02

Who’s exploiting it?

— attribution turns risk into urgency
Attribution not established

No confirmed (advisory-backed) threat-actor attribution is established for this record. Absence of a named actor is not absence of compromise — see Coverage & confidence.

03

Why it matters

— the attack path, told twice: adversary, then board
1

Front door — unauthenticated access narrative 1

Attacker
I craft a malicious PDF document containing data that overflows a stack buffer during parsing.
Business
Users receive seemingly legitimate documents via email or web download, creating initial infection vector.
2

Keys to the kingdom — privilege/identity takeover narrative 2

Attacker
I trigger the overflow by delivering the document to a target running vulnerable Adobe Reader or Acrobat.
Business
The application processes the file without adequate input validation, allowing memory corruption.
3

Lateral reach — past segmentation narrative 3

Attacker
I overwrite the stack to redirect execution flow to my injected shellcode.
Business
Arbitrary code executes with the privileges of the user running Adobe Reader, compromising the endpoint.
4

Data at risk — exfiltration narrative 4

Attacker
I establish persistence or move laterally within the network from the compromised system.
Business
Attackers gain foothold for data theft, malware deployment, or further network compromise.
04

What to do

— defensible action
  • Remediate per the vendor advisory — confirm the fixed build for your version and verify exposure.1
Say it to the boardA vulnerability with this evidence profile is a defensible budget line, not a backlog ticket — fund the change against the proof above.
05

Coverage & confidence

— what we know, and what we don’t

Established (cited)

  • KEV listing (CISA)
  • EPSS probability (FIRST)
  • 7 reported-exploitation source(s)
  • CWE weakness mapping (NVD)
  • Catalogued by mitre (CNA)
  • Coverage gaps — stated, not hidden

  • No EUVD / GCVE mirror in feed — single-authority dependency for the identifier.
  • EPSS & exposure are time-varying; verify live at the source.
  • Threat-actor attribution not established from feed data — absence of a name is not absence of compromise.
  • No finder/reporter credit recorded in the public CVE entry — the work behind this find is unattributed.
  • Disclosure & credit2
    Catalogued by mitreCNA
    Credited with finding itNo finder named in the public CVE record — the work behind this find is unattributed.