CVE-2018-20650

CVE-2018-20650 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Freedesktop Poppler with a CVSS 3.x base score of 6.5. It is not currently listed as actively exploited by CISA, and its EPSS exploit-prediction score is low. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-20.

Key facts

• Severity: Medium (CVSS 3.x base score 6.5)
• CVSS v2: 4.3
• EPSS exploit prediction: 3% (84th percentile)
• Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
• Weakness: CWE-20
• Affected product: Freedesktop Poppler
• Published: 2019-01-01
• Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

A reachable Object::dictLookup assertion in Poppler 0.72.0 allows attackers to cause a denial of service due to the lack of a check for the dict data type, as demonstrated by use of the FileSpec class (in FileSpec.cc) in pdfdetach.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2018-20650?

A reachable Object::dictLookup assertion in Poppler 0.72.0 allows attackers to cause a denial of service due to the lack of a check for the dict data type, as demonstrated by use of the FileSpec class (in FileSpec.cc) in pdfdetach.

How severe is CVE-2018-20650?

CVE-2018-20650 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 6.5, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity none, and availability high.

Is CVE-2018-20650 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 3% (84th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2018-20650?

CVE-2018-20650 primarily affects Freedesktop Poppler. In total, 22 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.

How do I fix CVE-2018-20650?

Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.

When was CVE-2018-20650 published?

CVE-2018-20650 was published on 2019-01-01 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

• http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/106459
• https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2019:2022
• https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2019:2713
• https://gitlab.freedesktop.org/poppler/poppler/commit/de0c0b8324e776f0b851485e0fc9622fc35695b7
• https://gitlab.freedesktop.org/poppler/poppler/issues/704
• https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2019/09/msg00033.html
• https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2020/11/msg00014.html
• https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2022/09/msg00030.html
• https://usn.ubuntu.com/3865-1/

Affected products (22)

• cpe:2.3:a:freedesktop:poppler:0.72.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:14.04:*:*:*:lts:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:16.04:*:*:*:lts:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:18.04:*:*:*:lts:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:18.10:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:8.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:9.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:10.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux:8.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_desktop:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_eus:8.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_eus:8.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_eus:8.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_eus:8.6:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_server:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_server_aus:8.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_server_aus:8.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_server_aus:8.6:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_server_tus:8.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_server_tus:8.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_server_tus:8.6:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_workstation:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

More vulnerabilities in Freedesktop Poppler

• CVE-2019-9631 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): Poppler 0.74.0 has a heap-based buffer over-read in the CairoRescaleBox.cc downsample_row_box_filter function.
• CVE-2018-21009 — High (CVSS 8.8): Poppler before 0.66.0 has an integer overflow in Parser::makeStream in Parser.cc.
• CVE-2019-12293 — High (CVSS 8.8): In Poppler through 0.76.1, there is a heap-based buffer over-read in JPXStream::init in JPEG2000Stream.cc via data with…
• CVE-2019-10872 — High (CVSS 8.8): An issue was discovered in Poppler 0.74.0. There is a heap-based buffer over-read in the function…
• CVE-2019-9545 — High (CVSS 8.8): An issue was discovered in Poppler 0.74.0. A recursive function call, in JBIG2Stream::readTextRegion() located in…
• CVE-2019-9543 — High (CVSS 8.8): An issue was discovered in Poppler 0.74.0. A recursive function call, in JBIG2Stream::readGenericBitmap() located in…

All CVEs affecting Freedesktop Poppler →

Other CWE-20 (Improper Input Validation) vulnerabilities

• CVE-2026-48316 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): ColdFusion versions 2025.9, 2023.20 and earlier are affected by an Improper Input Validation vulnerability that could…
• CVE-2026-48281 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): ColdFusion versions 2025.9, 2023.20 and earlier are affected by an Improper Input Validation vulnerability that could…
• CVE-2026-48277 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): ColdFusion versions 2025.9, 2023.20 and earlier are affected by an Improper Input Validation vulnerability that could…
• CVE-2026-48055 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Streambert is a cross-platform Electron Desktop App to stream and download any video media. In versions 2.4.0 and…
• CVE-2026-34910 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): A malicious actor with access to the network could exploit an Improper Input Validation vulnerability found in UniFi OS…
• CVE-2026-33587 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Lack of user input sanitisation in Open Notebook v1.8.3 allows the application user to execute Python code (and…

Browse all CWE-20 (Improper Input Validation) vulnerabilities →