Fortinet Discovers Foxit PhantomPDF/Reader Arbitrary Application Execution Vulnerability

Summary

Fortinet's FortiGuard Labs has discovered an Arbitrary Application Execution vulnerability in Foxit PhantomPDF and Reader.

Foxit PhantomPDF provides a cost-effective solution for business professionals to work securely with PDF documents and forms. It provides a full featured platform to view, create, edit, collaborate, share, secure, organize, export, and sign PDF. PhantomPDF is available in two editions: Standard and Business. Foxit Reader is a free PDF Reader.

An Arbitrary Application Execution vulnerability has been discovered in Foxit PhantomPDF and Reader. The vulnerability exists because users can embed executable file into PDF file. It can be exploited by attackers to spread malware by embedding it into a PDF file. When victims open it, the embedded malware can be executed.


Solutions

Users should apply the solution provided by Foxit Software.

Timeline

Fortinet reported the vulnerability to Foxit on March 20, 2018.

Foxit patched the vulnerability on April 19, 2018.

Acknowledgement

This vulnerability was discovered by Chris Navarrete of Fortinet's FortiGuard Labs.

IPS Subscription

Fortinet customers who subscribe to Fortinet's intrusion prevention (IPS) service should be protected against this vulnerability with the appropriate configuration parameters in place. Fortinet's IPS service is one component of FortiGuard Subscription Services, which also offer comprehensive solutions such as antivirus, Web content filtering and antispam capabilities. These services enable protection against threats on both application and network layers. FortiGuard Services are continuously updated by FortiGuard Labs, which enables Fortinet to deliver a combination of multi-layered security intelligence and true zero-day protection from new and emerging threats. These updates are delivered to all FortiGate, FortiMail and FortiClient products. Fortinet strictly follows responsible disclosure guidelines to ensure optimum protection during a threat's lifecycle.