CVE-2009-3459
Adobe Acrobat and Reader Heap-Based Buffer Overflow Vulnerability - [Actively Exploited]
Description
Heap-based buffer overflow in Adobe Reader and Acrobat 7.x before 7.1.4, 8.x before 8.1.7, and 9.x before 9.2 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted PDF file that triggers memory corruption, as exploited in the wild in October 2009. NOTE: some of these details are obtained from third party information.
INFO
Published Date :
Oct. 13, 2009, 10:30 a.m.
Last Modified :
May 21, 2026, 12:56 p.m.
Remotely Exploit :
Yes !
Source :
[email protected]
CISA KEV (Known Exploited Vulnerabilities)
For the benefit of the cybersecurity community and network defenders—and to help every organization better manage vulnerabilities and keep pace with threat activity—CISA maintains the authoritative source of vulnerabilities that have been exploited in the wild.
Adobe Acrobat and Reader contain a heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability which could allow remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted PDF file that triggers memory corruption.
Apply mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.
Unknown
https://www.cisa.gov/news-events/alerts/2009/10/13/adobe-reader-and-acrobat-vulnerabilities ; https://web.archive.org/web/20120324170253/http://www.adobe.com/support/security/bulletins/apsb09-15.html#:~:text=CVE%2D2009%2D3459).-,NOTE%3A,-There%20are%20reports ; https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2009-3459
Affected Products
The following products are affected by CVE-2009-3459
vulnerability.
Even if cvefeed.io is aware of the exact versions of the
products
that
are
affected, the information is not represented in the table below.
CVSS Scores
| Score | Version | Severity | Vector | Exploitability Score | Impact Score | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVSS 2.0 | HIGH | [email protected] | ||||
| CVSS 3.1 | HIGH | 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0 |
Solution
- Upgrade to Adobe Reader or Acrobat version 9.2, 8.1.7, 7.1.4 or later.
- Update the affected application package.
Public PoC/Exploit Available at Github
CVE-2009-3459 has a 2 public
PoC/Exploit available at Github.
Go to the Public Exploits tab to see the list.
References to Advisories, Solutions, and Tools
Here, you will find a curated list of external links that provide in-depth
information, practical solutions, and valuable tools related to
CVE-2009-3459.
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration
While CVE identifies
specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or
weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2009-3459 is
associated with the following CWEs:
Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC)
Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification
(CAPEC)
stores attack patterns, which are descriptions of the common attributes and
approaches employed by adversaries to exploit the CVE-2009-3459
weaknesses.
We scan GitHub repositories to detect new proof-of-concept exploits. Following list is a collection of public exploits and proof-of-concepts, which have been published on GitHub (sorted by the most recently updated).
None
CVEs and Techniques used PDF as an attack vector.
Results are limited to the first 15 repositories due to potential performance issues.
The following list is the news that have been mention
CVE-2009-3459 vulnerability anywhere in the article.
-
TheCyberThrone
CISA adds Seven Vulnerabilities to KEV Catalog
May 21, 2026CISA has added seven vulnerabilities to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) Catalog based on confirmed evidence of active exploitation. The batch spans Microsoft Windows, Microsoft I ... Read more
-
The Hacker News
Microsoft Warns of Two Actively Exploited Defender Vulnerabilities
Microsoft has disclosed that a privilege escalation and a denial-of-service flaw in Defender has come under active exploitation in the wild. The former, tracked as CVE-2026-41091, is rated 7.8 on the ... Read more
The following table lists the changes that have been made to the
CVE-2009-3459 vulnerability over time.
Vulnerability history details can be useful for understanding the evolution of a vulnerability, and for identifying the most recent changes that may impact the vulnerability's severity, exploitability, or other characteristics.
-
Modified Analysis by [email protected]
May. 21, 2026
Action Type Old Value New Value Changed CPE Configuration OR *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:8.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:3.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:8.1.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:5.0.10:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:4.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:9.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:6.0.5:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.0.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:3.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.0.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.0.8:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:8.1.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:8.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.0.6:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:9:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:4.0.5c:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:4.0.5a:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:5.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:6.0.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.0.7:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:9.1.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.1.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:8.1.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:5.0.5:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:6.0.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions up to (including) 9.1.3 *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:6.0.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.0.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:4.0.5:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.0.5:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.0.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:9.0.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:9.1.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.0.9:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:8.1.6:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:6.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:5.0.6:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:6.0.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:8.1.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:* OR *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions from (including) 7.0 up to (excluding) 7.1.4 *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions from (including) 8.0 up to (excluding) 8.1.7 *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions from (including) 9.0 up to (excluding) 9.2 Changed CPE Configuration OR *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:7.0.7:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:8.1.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:7.0.5:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:5.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:4.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:7.1.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:4.5:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:5.0.11:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:7.0.8:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:5.0.9:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:9.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:4.0.5c:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:5.0.6:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:9.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:8.1.6:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat_reader:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions up to (including) 9.0 *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:9.1.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:7.1.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:6.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:7.0.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:5.0.10:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:6.0.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:4.0.5a:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:6.0.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:5.0.5:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:3.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:8.1.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:7.0.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:6.0.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:7.0.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:7.0.9:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:7.1.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:5.0.7:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:8.1.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:4.0.5:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:6.0.5:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:5.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:6.0.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:* OR *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat_reader:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions from (including) 7.0 up to (excluding) 7.1.4 *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat_reader:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions from (including) 8.0 up to (excluding) 8.1.7 *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat_reader:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions from (including) 9.0 up to (excluding) 9.2 Changed Reference Type Adobe Systems Incorporated: http://blogs.adobe.com/psirt/2009/10/adobe_reader_and_acrobat_issue_1.html Types: Vendor Advisory Adobe Systems Incorporated: http://blogs.adobe.com/psirt/2009/10/adobe_reader_and_acrobat_issue_1.html Types: Broken Link, Vendor Advisory Changed Reference Type CVE: http://blogs.adobe.com/psirt/2009/10/adobe_reader_and_acrobat_issue_1.html Types: Vendor Advisory CVE: http://blogs.adobe.com/psirt/2009/10/adobe_reader_and_acrobat_issue_1.html Types: Broken Link, Vendor Advisory Added Reference Type Adobe Systems Incorporated: http://isc.sans.org/diary.html?storyid=7300 Types: Not Applicable Added Reference Type CVE: http://isc.sans.org/diary.html?storyid=7300 Types: Not Applicable Added Reference Type Adobe Systems Incorporated: http://securitytracker.com/id?1023007 Types: Broken Link Added Reference Type CVE: http://securitytracker.com/id?1023007 Types: Broken Link Added Reference Type Adobe Systems Incorporated: http://www.iss.net/threats/348.html Types: Broken Link Added Reference Type CVE: http://www.iss.net/threats/348.html Types: Broken Link Added Reference Type Adobe Systems Incorporated: http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/36600 Types: Broken Link Added Reference Type CVE: http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/36600 Types: Broken Link Added Reference Type Adobe Systems Incorporated: https://exchange.xforce.ibmcloud.com/vulnerabilities/53691 Types: Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry Added Reference Type CVE: https://exchange.xforce.ibmcloud.com/vulnerabilities/53691 Types: Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry Added Reference Type Adobe Systems Incorporated: https://oval.cisecurity.org/repository/search/definition/oval%3Aorg.mitre.oval%3Adef%3A6534 Types: Broken Link Added Reference Type CVE: https://oval.cisecurity.org/repository/search/definition/oval%3Aorg.mitre.oval%3Adef%3A6534 Types: Broken Link Added Reference Type CISA-ADP: https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2009-3459 Types: US Government Resource -
CVE CISA KEV Update by 9119a7d8-5eab-497f-8521-727c672e3725
May. 20, 2026
Action Type Old Value New Value Added Date Added 2026-05-20 Added Due Date 2026-05-20 Added Required Action 2026-05-20 Added Vulnerability Name 2026-05-20 -
CVE Modified by 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0
May. 20, 2026
Action Type Old Value New Value Added CVSS V3.1 AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Added CWE CWE-122 Added Reference https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2009-3459 -
Status Change by [email protected]
Apr. 23, 2026
Action Type Old Value New Value -
CVE Modified by af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108
Nov. 21, 2024
Action Type Old Value New Value Added Reference http://blogs.adobe.com/psirt/2009/10/adobe_reader_and_acrobat_issue_1.html Added Reference http://isc.sans.org/diary.html?storyid=7300 Added Reference http://secunia.com/advisories/36983 Added Reference http://securitytracker.com/id?1023007 Added Reference http://www.adobe.com/support/security/bulletins/apsb09-15.html Added Reference http://www.iss.net/threats/348.html Added Reference http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/36600 Added Reference http://www.us-cert.gov/cas/techalerts/TA09-286B.html Added Reference http://www.vupen.com/english/advisories/2009/2851 Added Reference http://www.vupen.com/english/advisories/2009/2898 Added Reference https://exchange.xforce.ibmcloud.com/vulnerabilities/53691 Added Reference https://oval.cisecurity.org/repository/search/definition/oval%3Aorg.mitre.oval%3Adef%3A6534 -
CVE Modified by [email protected]
May. 14, 2024
Action Type Old Value New Value -
CPE Deprecation Remap by [email protected]
Oct. 30, 2018
Action Type Old Value New Value Changed CPE Configuration OR *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:reader:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions from (including) 9.1.3 OR *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat_reader:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions from (including) 9.0 -
CPE Deprecation Remap by [email protected]
Oct. 30, 2018
Action Type Old Value New Value Changed CPE Configuration OR *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:8.0.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* OR *cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:8.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* -
CVE Modified by [email protected]
Sep. 19, 2017
Action Type Old Value New Value Removed Reference http://oval.mitre.org/repository/data/getDef?id=oval:org.mitre.oval:def:6534 [No Types Assigned] Added Reference https://oval.cisecurity.org/repository/search/definition/oval%3Aorg.mitre.oval%3Adef%3A6534 [No Types Assigned] -
CVE Modified by [email protected]
Aug. 17, 2017
Action Type Old Value New Value Removed Reference http://xforce.iss.net/xforce/xfdb/53691 [No Types Assigned] Added Reference https://exchange.xforce.ibmcloud.com/vulnerabilities/53691 [No Types Assigned] -
Initial Analysis by [email protected]
Oct. 13, 2009
Action Type Old Value New Value