CVE-2023-38225
Published: 10 August 2023
Summary
CVE-2023-38225 is a high-severity Use After Free (CWE-416) vulnerability in Apple Macos. Its CVSS base score is 7.8 (High).
Operationally, ranked in the top 9.6% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.
Deeper analysis
Adobe Acrobat Reader versions 23.003.20244 and earlier, along with versions 20.005.30467 and earlier, contain a Use After Free vulnerability tracked as CVE-2023-38225 and assigned CWE-416. The flaw carries a CVSS 3.1 score of 7.8 and can lead to arbitrary code execution in the context of the current user when triggered.
An attacker can exploit the issue by supplying a malicious PDF file that the victim must open. Successful exploitation grants the attacker the ability to execute arbitrary code on the affected system without requiring prior authentication or elevated privileges beyond the victim's user context.
The Adobe security advisory at https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/acrobat/apsb23-30.html addresses the vulnerability and provides patch information for the impacted Acrobat Reader releases.
EPSS for this CVE rose from a low baseline after disclosure to a peak of 0.3023 on 2025-01-22 before receding to the current value of 0.0546, indicating a period of increased exploitation interest that later subsided.
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2023-42045
Vulnerability details
Adobe Acrobat Reader versions 23.003.20244 (and earlier) and 20.005.30467 (and earlier) are affected by a Use After Free vulnerability that could result in arbitrary code execution in the context of the current user. Exploitation of this issue requires user interaction…
more
in that a victim must open a malicious file.
- 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.