CVE-2009-3959

CVE-2009-3959 is a critical-severity vulnerability in Adobe Acrobat with a CVSS 2.0 base score of 10.0. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score of 11% places it in the 95th percentile, indicating an elevated likelihood of exploitation. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-189.

Key facts

• Severity: Critical (CVSS 2.0 base score 10.0)
• EPSS exploit prediction: 11% (95th percentile)
• Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
• Weakness: CWE-189
• Affected product: Adobe Acrobat
• Published: 2010-01-13
• Last modified: 2026-06-16

Description

Integer overflow in the U3D implementation in Adobe Reader and Acrobat 9.x before 9.3, and 8.x before 8.2 on Windows and Mac OS X, allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a malformed PDF document.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2009-3959?

Integer overflow in the U3D implementation in Adobe Reader and Acrobat 9.x before 9.3, and 8.x before 8.2 on Windows and Mac OS X, allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a malformed PDF document.

How severe is CVE-2009-3959?

CVE-2009-3959 has a CVSS 2.0 base score of 10.0, rated critical severity.

Is CVE-2009-3959 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 11% (95th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2009-3959?

CVE-2009-3959 primarily affects Adobe Acrobat. In total, 97 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.

How do I fix CVE-2009-3959?

Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its critical severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.

When was CVE-2009-3959 published?

CVE-2009-3959 was published on 2010-01-13 and last updated on 2026-06-16.

References

• http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2010-01/msg00009.html
• http://secunia.com/advisories/38138
• http://secunia.com/advisories/38215
• http://www.adobe.com/support/security/bulletins/apsb10-02.html
• http://www.redhat.com/support/errata/RHSA-2010-0060.html
• http://www.securityfocus.com/archive/1/508949
• http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/37756
• http://www.securitytracker.com/id?1023446
• http://www.us-cert.gov/cas/techalerts/TA10-013A.html
• http://www.vupen.com/english/advisories/2010/0103
• https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=554293
• https://exchange.xforce.ibmcloud.com/vulnerabilities/55557
• https://oval.cisecurity.org/repository/search/definition/oval%3Aorg.mitre.oval%3Adef%3A8539

Affected products (97)

• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:3.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:3.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:4.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:4.0.5:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:4.0.5a:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:4.0.5c:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:5.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:5.0.5:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:5.0.6:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:5.0.10:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:6.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:6.0.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:6.0.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:6.0.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:6.0.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:6.0.5:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:6.0.6:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.0.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.0.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.0.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.0.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.0.5:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.0.6:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.0.7:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.0.8:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.0.9:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.1.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.1.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.1.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.1.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:7.1.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:8.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:8.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:8.1.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:8.1.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:8.1.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:8.1.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:adobe:acrobat:8.1.5:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

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• CVE-2015-6575 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): SampleTable.cpp in libstagefright in Android before 5.1.1 LMY48I does not properly consider integer promotion, which…
• CVE-2015-3864 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Integer underflow in the MPEG4Extractor::parseChunk function in MPEG4Extractor.cpp in libstagefright in mediaserver in…
• CVE-2015-3836 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): The Parse_wave function in arm-wt-22k/lib_src/eas_mdls.c in the Sonivox DLS-to-EAS converter in Android before 5.1.1…
• CVE-2015-3834 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Multiple integer overflows in the BnHDCP::onTransact function in media/libmedia/IHDCP.cpp in libstagefright in Android…

Browse all CWE-189 (Numeric Errors) vulnerabilities →