Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
This flaw affects Adobe Photoshop on user workstations. A malicious JSX file could cause Photoshop to run attacker-controlled code as the signed-in user if the victim opens it. Business risk is highest for teams that receive external design files or scripts.
Executive priority
Treat as a high-priority workstation remediation issue, especially for creative teams. It is not described as remotely exploitable without user action, but successful exploitation could compromise a user account and endpoint.
Technical view
CVE-2021-28548 is a CWE-120 buffer overflow in Adobe Photoshop when parsing specially crafted JSX files. Affected versions include Photoshop 21.2.6 and earlier, and 22.3 and earlier. The CVSS 3.0 score is 7.8, with local attack vector, low complexity, no privileges required, and required user interaction.
Likely exposure
Exposure is limited to systems with affected Photoshop versions installed. It is most relevant to creative, marketing, design, and production users who may open JSX files or receive untrusted Photoshop-related content from external sources.
Exploitation context
The source bundle does not show CISA KEV listing or any cited evidence of active exploitation. Exploitation requires user interaction: the victim must open a malicious JSX file. The impact is arbitrary code execution in the current user context.
Researcher notes
Evidence is clear for vulnerability class, affected product, user interaction requirement, and impact. The supplied data does not include CPEs, fixed version details, public exploit evidence, or vendor mitigations beyond the Adobe advisory reference.
Mitigation direction
- Review Adobe APSB21-28 for official remediation guidance.
- Update affected Photoshop installations according to Adobe guidance.
- Prioritize users who handle external design assets or scripts.
- Restrict opening untrusted JSX files until remediation is complete.
- Use endpoint controls to reduce impact from user-context code execution.
Validation and detection
- Inventory Photoshop versions across managed endpoints.
- Flag Photoshop 21.2.6 and earlier, and 22.3 and earlier.
- Confirm remediation status against Adobe APSB21-28.
- Review security controls for externally received JSX files.
- Check whether high-risk creative users remain unpatched.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CWE-120: Exact CWE lookup
Use the exact CWE identifier as the starting point before reviewing related ATT&CK behavior. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupExecution behavior lookup
The CVE wording references code or command execution, so execution technique review may help defensive triage. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2021-28548 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- High
- CVSS
- 7.8 (3.0)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
CVSS vector scores
1 official scoreWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H1.85.9Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.0 score
7.8HighVector: CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/photoshop/apsb21-28.htmlCVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.
Buffer Copy without Checking Size of Input ('Classic Buffer Overflow')
Buffer Copy without Checking Size of Input ('Classic Buffer Overflow') represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.