EUVD-2025-19162
CVSS Vector
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Lifecycle Timeline
3Description
PDF-XChange Editor GIF File Parsing Heap-based Buffer Overflow Remote Code Execution Vulnerability. This vulnerability allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code on affected installations of PDF-XChange Editor. User interaction is required to exploit this vulnerability in that the target must visit a malicious page or open a malicious file. The specific flaw exists within the parsing of GIF files. The issue results from the lack of proper validation of the length of user-supplied data prior to copying it to a fixed-length heap-based buffer. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to execute code in the context of the current process. Was ZDI-CAN-26763.
Analysis
CVE-2025-6660 is a heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability in PDF-XChange Editor's GIF file parsing engine that enables remote code execution with high severity (CVSS 7.8). The vulnerability affects users who open malicious GIF files or visit compromised web pages hosting malicious GIFs, requiring user interaction for exploitation. The flaw stems from inadequate validation of user-supplied data lengths before copying to fixed-length buffers, allowing attackers to overwrite heap memory and execute arbitrary code in the application's context.
Technical Context
The vulnerability exists in PDF-XChange Editor's GIF image parsing functionality, a component responsible for decoding Graphics Interchange Format (GIF) files embedded in or associated with PDF documents. The root cause is classified as CWE-122 (Heap-based Buffer Overflow), which occurs when the parser fails to validate the length of GIF-related data structures (such as image descriptors, color tables, or data blocks) before copying them into fixed-size heap-allocated buffers. This type of memory safety issue is common in legacy image parsing libraries where developers assume input data conforms to format specifications without defensive validation. The GIF format's variable-length fields (global color table, local color tables, data blocks with length prefixes) create opportunities for attackers to supply oversized payloads that overflow adjacent heap objects, corrupting metadata, function pointers, or other sensitive heap structures.
Affected Products
PDF-XChange Editor (specific version ranges not provided in the CVE description; vendor should clarify affected versions in security advisory). The CPE would likely be cpe:2.4:a:tracker-software:pdf-xchange_editor:*:* with version constraints to be determined from Tracker Software's advisory. Based on the vulnerability classification and ZDI submission (ZDI-CAN-26763), this likely affects multiple recent versions of PDF-XChange Editor on Windows platforms. Related products in the PDF-XChange family (PDF-XChange Viewer, PDF-XChange Editor Plus) may also be affected if they share GIF parsing code.
Remediation
1. **Patch Application**: Monitor Tracker Software's official security advisories for a patched version of PDF-XChange Editor that includes proper input validation in the GIF parsing code. Apply updates immediately upon availability. 2. **Vendor Advisory**: Check https://www.tracker-software.com/buy/pdfxchangeeditor for security updates and advisories. 3. **Workarounds**: Until patched, users should: (a) disable GIF rendering in PDF documents if the application settings permit, (b) avoid opening PDF files or standalone GIFs from untrusted sources, (c) use alternative PDF viewers (Adobe Reader, Foxit Reader) as temporary alternatives for untrusted documents, (d) implement application sandboxing (Windows AppContainer, virtualization) to limit RCE impact. 4. **Detection**: Monitor for unexpected crashes or suspicious process execution originating from pdf-xchange-related processes; check process trees for child processes spawned by PDF-XChange Editor. 5. **Network Mitigation**: Organizations should block access to known malicious file repositories and implement email gateway scanning to filter suspicious GIF attachments.
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External POC / Exploit Code
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