CVE-2009-3459: Adobe Acrobat and Reader Heap-Based Buffer Overflow Vulnerability

How to check if you are exposed to CVE-2009-3459

1. Find every Adobe Acrobat and Reader system you or your clients run, including ones exposed to the internet. Those come first: CISA only lists flaws attackers are already using.
2. Compare each version with the fixed versions in the vendor advisory below. Where no fix exists yet, apply the vendor’s mitigation or take the system off the internet.
3. Run a credentialed vulnerability scan to catch the systems you missed, then check that the next scan no longer reports CVE-2009-3459.

US federal agencies had to fix this by 2026-06-03. Everyone else should treat that deadline as a guide: if it has passed, this is overdue.

Affected versions

Versions the National Vulnerability Database lists as vulnerable to CVE-2009-3459. Check the vendor advisory for the exact fixed builds before you sign anything off.

Timeline

1. 2009-10-13 · Published in the National Vulnerability Database
2. 2026-05-20 · Added to CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, 6,063 days after it was published
3. 2026-06-03 · Fix-by date for US federal agencies, passed 151 days ago

Vendor advisories and fixes

• https://www.cisa.gov/news-events/alerts/2009/10/13/adobe-reader-and-acrobat-vulnerabilities
• https://web.archive.org/web/20120324170253/http://www.adobe.com/support/security/bulletins/apsb09-15.html#:~:text=CVE%2D2009%2D3459).-,NOTE%3A,-There%20are%20reports

Weakness type

• CWE-119

More exploited Adobe vulnerabilities

CISA lists 83 exploited Adobe vulnerabilities. The closest matches:

• CVE-2026-34621Adobe Acrobat and Reader Prototype Pollution VulnerabilityAdded 2026-04-13
• CVE-2023-21608Adobe Acrobat and Reader Use-After-Free VulnerabilityAdded 2023-10-10
• CVE-2023-26369Adobe Acrobat and Reader Out-of-Bounds Write VulnerabilityAdded 2023-09-14
• CVE-2018-4990Adobe Acrobat and Reader Double Free VulnerabilityAdded 2022-06-08
• CVE-2010-2883Adobe Acrobat and Reader Stack-Based Buffer Overflow VulnerabilityAdded 2022-06-08
• CVE-2009-4324Adobe Acrobat and Reader Use-After-Free VulnerabilityAdded 2022-06-08
• CVE-2009-3953Adobe Acrobat and Reader Universal 3D Remote Code Execution VulnerabilityAdded 2022-06-08
• CVE-2008-0655Adobe Acrobat and Reader Unspecified VulnerabilityAdded 2022-06-08

Keep going

• All exploited CVEs
• Check another CVE
• What is CISA KEV?
• What is EPSS?

Sources: CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog (version 2026.10.30); EPSS data from FIRST.org; CVSS and descriptions from the NIST National Vulnerability Database. Checked 2026-11-01. This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD.