Is CVE-2020-26539 actively exploited?

No active exploitation of CVE-2020-26539 has been confirmed so far. Continue monitoring, as exploit status can change.

Can CVE-2020-26539 be exploited remotely?

Yes. CVE-2020-26539 is exploitable remotely over the network (CVSS attack vector: Network).

What is the CVSS score of CVE-2020-26539?

CVE-2020-26539 has a CVSS score of 9.8 (CRITICAL).

HOME VULNERABILITIESCVE-2020-26539

CRITICAL

CVE-2020-26539

CWE-416Published: October 2, 2020· Updated: Jun 17, 2026

9.8

CVSS v3.1

Official Description

An issue was discovered in Foxit Reader and PhantomPDF before 10.1. When there is a multiple interpretation error for /V (in the Additional Action and Field dictionaries), a use-after-free can occur with resultant remote code execution (or an information leak).

NVD Source

Technical Analysis

CVE-2020-26539 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.