Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
This is a high-severity Adobe Acrobat Reader flaw. If a user opens a malicious PDF, the attacker could run code with that user's permissions. The main business risk is phishing or document-based delivery against endpoints running affected Reader versions.
Executive priority
Prioritize this for normal high-severity endpoint patching, especially on user-facing systems handling external PDFs. Urgency increases where users regularly receive documents from outside the organization.
Technical view
CVE-2022-24102 is a CWE-416 use-after-free in Acrobat Reader DC annotation handling. A malicious file can trigger arbitrary code execution in the current user's context. CVSS 3.0 is 7.8 with low attack complexity, no privileges required, and required user interaction.
Likely exposure
Exposure is likely on workstations with Acrobat Reader DC versions 20.001.20085 and earlier, 20.005.3031x and earlier, or 17.012.30205 and earlier. The source bundle provides no CPEs or confirmed fixed versions.
Exploitation context
The provided sources do not show CISA KEV listing or active exploitation. Exploitation requires user interaction: a victim must open a malicious file. Treat suspicious PDF delivery as the primary plausible attack path.
Researcher notes
The record supports arbitrary code execution as the current user via a malicious file, but does not provide exploit details, CPEs, or fixed-version data in the bundle. Do not claim active exploitation without additional cited evidence.
Mitigation direction
- Review Adobe APSB22-16 for vendor-listed fixed versions and update guidance.
- Patch or upgrade affected Acrobat Reader installations through managed endpoint tooling.
- Restrict risky PDF handling on unpatched systems where business operations allow.
- Use mail and endpoint controls to reduce malicious document delivery risk.
Validation and detection
- Inventory Acrobat Reader versions across endpoints.
- Compare installed versions against the affected version thresholds in the CVE description.
- Confirm patch deployment status against Adobe APSB22-16.
- Review security telemetry for suspicious PDF-related process activity.
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-416: 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-2022-24102 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.
SSVC decision data
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:H1.85.9adobeVulnerability 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
Vulnerability timeline
Timeline events are normalized from CVE metadata, CNA source timelines, ADP timelines, and KEV metadata when present.
- CVE reservedCVE Program
The CVE ID was reserved by the assigning CNA.
- CVE publishedCVE Program
The CVE record was published.
- CVE updatedCVE Program
The CVE record metadata indicates this as the latest update time.
ADP provider summaries
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/acrobat/apsb22-16.htmlCVE reference, adobe · 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.
Use After Free
Use After Free represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.