Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
CVE-2021-31472 affects Foxit Reader 10.1.1.37576. A malicious PDF or web page can trigger memory corruption after user interaction, potentially letting an attacker run code as the logged-in user. This is important for organizations where staff open externally supplied PDFs.
Executive priority
Treat as a high-priority endpoint remediation issue, especially for teams that open outside PDFs. It is not KEV-listed in the supplied data, but the impact is full code execution after user interaction.
Technical view
The flaw is in Foxit Reader handling of U3D objects inside PDF files. Improper validation of user-supplied data can cause a write past the end of an allocated data structure, classified as CWE-787, enabling code execution in the current process.
Likely exposure
Exposure is limited to installations of Foxit Reader 10.1.1.37576 identified in the source bundle. Risk is higher on endpoints that routinely process untrusted PDFs from email, web downloads, portals, or customer submissions.
Exploitation context
The bundle says exploitation requires user interaction: opening a malicious file or visiting a malicious page. CISA KEV status is false in the supplied data, and no cited source in the bundle confirms active exploitation.
Researcher notes
ZDI identifies this as ZDI-21-529 and ZDI-CAN-13011. The CVSS 3.0 vector is AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H, reflecting local trigger through user interaction with high confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact.
Mitigation direction
- Inventory endpoints for Foxit Reader 10.1.1.37576.
- Check Foxit security bulletins for the vendor-designated fixed version.
- Upgrade or remove vulnerable Foxit Reader installations per vendor guidance.
- Reduce exposure to untrusted PDFs until remediation is complete.
- Use endpoint protections to monitor suspicious child processes from PDF readers.
Validation and detection
- Confirm whether Foxit Reader 10.1.1.37576 exists in software inventory.
- Verify remediated hosts no longer report the vulnerable version.
- Review Foxit advisory coverage for CVE-2021-31472.
- Check EDR telemetry for unusual process launches from Foxit Reader.
- Prioritize users handling externally supplied PDF files.
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-787: 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-2021-31472 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://www.foxitsoftware.com/support/security-bulletins.phpCVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
- https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-21-529/CVE 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.
Out-of-bounds Write
Out-of-bounds Write represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.