Is CVE-2018-17609 actively exploited?

No active exploitation of CVE-2018-17609 has been confirmed so far. Continue monitoring, as exploit status can change.

Can CVE-2018-17609 be exploited remotely?

Yes. CVE-2018-17609 is exploitable remotely over the network (CVSS attack vector: Network).

What is the CVSS score of CVE-2018-17609?

CVE-2018-17609 has a CVSS score of 9.8 (CRITICAL).

HOME VULNERABILITIESCVE-2018-17609

CRITICAL

CVE-2018-17609

CWE-416Published: September 28, 2018· Updated: Jun 17, 2026

9.8

CVSS v3.1

Official Description

Foxit PhantomPDF and Reader before 9.3 allow remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (use-after-free) because properties of Annotation objects are mishandled. This relates to one of five distinct types of Annotation objects.

NVD Source

Technical Analysis

CVE-2018-17609 can be exploited remotely over the network without requiring physical or adjacent access, significantly expanding the attack surface for threat actors.

The vulnerability requires no privileges and no user interaction, making it a prime target for automated exploitation campaigns and worm-like propagation.

A successful exploit results in complete confidentiality breach (data exposure), full integrity compromise (data manipulation), availability disruption (denial of service), with a CVSS base score of 9.8.

From a weakness classification perspective (CWE-416): Use-after-free vulnerabilities involve accessing memory after it has been freed, often enabling arbitrary code execution.