External Entity Attack in PDF Disguised Document

Executive Summary

This vulnerability occurs because the input file does not need to be strictly in a valid PDF format. Instead, after reviewing the content, the original document disguised as a PDF is sent to the parser. Malicious documents can construct harmful external entities that, through the protocol, point to local file paths. This allows an attacker to access any local files that the user has permission to access.

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Impact Analysis

The vulnerability can lead to unauthorized access to local files on the user's system. An attacker could exploit this to read sensitive information stored in files that the user has permission to access, potentially leading to data leakage or exposure of confidential information.

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Compliance Impact

This vulnerability allows malicious documents to access any local files within the user's permission range by exploiting external entity references in files disguised as PDFs.

Such unauthorized access to local files could lead to exposure of sensitive or personal data, which may impact compliance with data protection regulations like GDPR and HIPAA that require safeguarding personal and sensitive information.

However, specific impacts on compliance depend on the nature of the accessed data and the context of the affected environment.

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Mitigation Strategies

To mitigate this vulnerability, users are advised to update their Foxit PDF Reader and Editor applications to the latest versions.

• Use the application’s built-in update feature to obtain the latest version.
• Alternatively, download the latest versions directly from the Foxit website.

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