Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
A malicious InDesign document could make vulnerable Adobe InDesign versions run code as the person who opens it. The business risk is strongest where staff exchange design files with clients, vendors, or public sources.
Executive priority
Treat as high priority for creative and publishing endpoints. It needs user interaction, but a single malicious file could compromise the current user’s workstation.
Technical view
CVE-2023-29308 is a CWE-787 out-of-bounds write in Adobe InDesign. Adobe lists ID18.3 and earlier, and ID17.4.1 and earlier, as affected. CVSS 3.1 is 7.8: local vector, low complexity, no privileges, user interaction required, and high confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact.
Likely exposure
Exposure is likely on workstations running affected Adobe InDesign versions, especially creative, marketing, publishing, and agency environments that open external InDesign files.
Exploitation context
The provided sources do not show KEV listing or active exploitation. Exploitation requires user interaction: a victim must open a malicious file.
Researcher notes
Evidence is limited to the CVE record and Adobe advisory reference. The affected CPE data in the bundle is not detailed, so validate exact product branches and fixed versions through Adobe APSB23-38.
Mitigation direction
- Review Adobe APSB23-38 for supported fixed releases and update instructions.
- Prioritize updating InDesign on systems that handle external design files.
- Avoid opening unexpected or untrusted InDesign files until remediated.
- Use least-privilege accounts for routine document handling where feasible.
Validation and detection
- Inventory installed Adobe InDesign versions across managed endpoints.
- Compare findings against ID18.3 and earlier, and ID17.4.1 and earlier.
- Confirm remediation status against Adobe APSB23-38 guidance.
- Review file-handling workflows for users receiving external design documents.
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-2023-29308 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 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/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:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H1.85.9Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
7.8HighVector: CVSS:3.1/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/indesign/apsb23-38.htmlCVE reference · vendor-advisory
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.