CVE-2010-2883
CVE-2010-2883 is a security flaw in Adobe Acrobat and Reader, Adobe’s software for opening and editing PDFs. Attackers can run their own code on Adobe Acrobat and Reader. The US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) added it to its catalog of flaws known to be used in attacks on 8 Jun 2022.[1]
Adobe Acrobat and Reader is in things households have, such as phones, computers, browsers and everyday apps, so the fix matters at home as much as at work.
Description
CISA calls it a stack-based buffer overflow in Adobe Acrobat and Reader. In its words: “Adobe Acrobat and Reader contain a stack-based buffer overflow vulnerability that allows remote attackers to execute code or cause denial-of-service (DoS).”[1]
The CVE record adds: “Stack-based buffer overflow in CoolType.dll in Adobe Reader and Acrobat 9.x before 9.4, and 8.x before 8.2.5 on Windows and Mac OS X, allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (application crash) via a PDF document with a long field in a Smart INdependent Glyphlets (SING) table in a TTF font, as exploited in the wild in September 2010. NOTE: some of these details are obtained from third party information.”[2]
The underlying weakness is memory buffer error (CWE-119), in MITRE’s list of common software weaknesses.
It scores 7.3 out of 10 on the Common Vulnerability Scoring System, which rates it high, scored by NVD using CVSS 3.1.[2]
Affected versions
NVD’s record doesn’t list version ranges for it. CISA names the product as Adobe Acrobat and Reader.
Every device with Adobe Acrobat and Reader needs the update.
Exploitation
CISA added it to its catalog of known exploited vulnerabilities on 8 Jun 2022, 4,290 days after it was made public. CISA lists a flaw only when it has reliable evidence of it being exploited, and gave US federal agencies until 22 Jun 2022 to fix it.[1]
FIRST’s Exploit Prediction Scoring System, which estimates how likely a flaw is to be used in attacks in the next 30 days from what it sees across the internet, puts it at 81%. That’s in the top 1% of the flaws it scores.[3]
CISA assesses it as not automatable: each attack takes some work.
CISA doesn’t say who was attacked, or how.
Fix
CISA’s required action: “Apply updates per vendor instructions.”[1]
- Update Adobe Acrobat and Reader now.Install the latest update from Adobe on every device that has it, and restart when asked. Then turn on automatic updates, so the next fix arrives on its own.
- If there’s no update, stop using it.CISA’s advice when a flaw being used in attacks has no fix is to stop using the product until it does.
Timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| The flaw is made public in the National Vulnerability Database, with a severity score of 7.3.[2] | |
| CISA adds it to its catalog of flaws known to be used in attacks.[1] | |
| CISA’s deadline for US government agencies to fix it.[1] | |
| FIRST puts the odds of it being used in attacks in the next 30 days at 81%.[3] |
See also
Other Adobe Acrobat and Reader flaws
- CVE-2009-3459: heap-based buffer overflow ·
- CVE-2026-34621: prototype pollution ·
- CVE-2023-21608: use-after-free ·
- CVE-2023-26369: out-of-bounds write ·
- CVE-2018-4990: double free ·
- CVE-2009-4324: use-after-free ·
Other Adobe flaws
- CVE-2026-48356, Adobe Commerce and Magento: unrestricted upload of file with dangerous type ·
- CVE-2026-71362, Adobe Commerce and Magento: incorrect authorization ·
- CVE-2026-75650, Adobe Commerce and Magento: improper neutralization of special elements used in a template engine ·
- CVE-2026-48282, Adobe ColdFusion: path traversal ·
- CVE-2020-9715, Adobe Acrobat: use-after-free ·
Other memory buffer error flaws
- CVE-2026-88779, Citrix NetScaler: improper restriction of operations within the bounds of a memory buffer ·
- CVE-2026-88772, Citrix NetScaler: improper restriction of operations within the bounds of a memory buffer ·
- CVE-2026-88771, Citrix NetScaler: improper input validation ·
- CVE-2026-8452, Citrix NetScaler ADC and NetScaler Gateway: improper restriction of operations within the bounds of a memory buffer ·
- CVE-2025-31277, Apple devices: buffer overflow ·
Added the same day
- CVE-2019-7195, QNAP Photo Station: path traversal ·
- CVE-2019-7194, QNAP Photo Station: path traversal ·
- CVE-2019-7193, QNAP QTS: improper input validation ·
- CVE-2019-7192, QNAP Photo Station: improper access control ·
- CVE-2019-5825, Chrome and other Chromium browsers: out-of-bounds write ·
Every Adobe flaw on CISA’s list · Everything added in June 2022
References
- ^ Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. “Adobe Acrobat and Reader Stack-Based Buffer Overflow Vulnerability”. Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog, added 8 Jun 2022.
- ^ National Institute of Standards and Technology. “CVE-2010-2883 Detail”. National Vulnerability Database, published 9 Sep 2010.
- ^ FIRST. “Exploit Prediction Scoring System”. EPSS 0.814, percentile 99.6, 31 Oct 2026.
- CVE Program. “CVE-2010-2883”. The official CVE record.
This article is built from CISA’s catalog (version 2026.10.30), NVD’s record and FIRST’s scores, kept in HARD’s database and checked every morning. The plain English is HARD’s.