CVE-2023-27330
Published: 03 May 2024
Summary
CVE-2023-27330 is a high-severity Use After Free (CWE-416) vulnerability in Foxit Pdf Editor. Its CVSS base score is 7.8 (High).
Operationally, ranked in the top 12.2% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.
Deeper analysis
Foxit PDF Reader contains a use-after-free vulnerability in its handling of XFA Annotation objects, tracked as CVE-2023-27330. The flaw stems from insufficient validation of object existence before performing operations on it, enabling arbitrary code execution when a specially crafted PDF is processed. The issue was originally reported as ZDI-CAN-19476 and carries a CVSS v3 score of 7.8.
An unauthenticated attacker can exploit the vulnerability by convincing a target to open a malicious PDF file or visit a malicious page that delivers such a file. Successful exploitation grants code execution in the context of the current Foxit PDF Reader process without requiring additional privileges beyond the user's own.
Foxit security bulletins and the corresponding Zero Day Initiative advisory ZDI-23-226 recommend applying the vendor-supplied patches to address the use-after-free condition in Annotation handling.
The EPSS score for this CVE rose materially from a low baseline to a peak of 0.3351 on 2025-12-11 before receding to its current value of 0.0348, indicating that exploitation interest increased after public disclosure.
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2023-31106
Vulnerability details
Foxit PDF Reader XFA Annotation Use-After-Free Remote Code Execution Vulnerability. This vulnerability allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code on affected installations of Foxit PDF Reader. User interaction is required to exploit this vulnerability in that the target must visit…
more
a malicious page or open a malicious file. The specific flaw exists within the handling of Annotation objects. The issue results from the lack of validating the existence of an object prior to performing operations on the object. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to execute code in the context of the current process. Was ZDI-CAN-19476.
- CWE(s)
Related Threats
No named actor attribution yet. ATT&CK technique mapping in progress for this CVE.
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Likely Mitigating Controls AI
Per-CVE control mapping for this CVE has not run yet; the list below is derived from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry.
Use-after-free exploits that achieve arbitrary code execution are blocked or significantly hardened by non-executable pages and ASLR.