Vulnerabilities

In Xpdf 4.05 (and earlier), invalid header info in a DCT (JPEG) stream can lead to an uninitialized variable in the DCT decoder. The proof-of-concept PDF file causes a segfault attempting to read from an invalid address.

Out-of-bounds array write in Xpdf 4.05 and earlier, due to missing object type check in AcroForm field reference.

In Xpdf 4.05 (and earlier), a PDF object loop in the PDF resources leads to infinite recursion and a stack overflow.

Out-of-bounds array write in Xpdf 4.05 and earlier, triggered by an invalid character code in a Type 1 font. The root problem was a bounds check that was being optimized away by modern compilers.

Out-of-bounds array write in Xpdf 4.05 and earlier, triggered by long Unicode sequence in ActualText.

In Xpdf 4.05 (and earlier), a PDF object loop in the attachments leads to infinite recursion and a stack overflow.

Out-of-bounds array write in Xpdf 4.05 and earlier, triggered by negative object number in indirect reference in the input PDF file.

An infinite recursion in Catalog::findDestInTree can cause denial of service for xpdf 4.02.

Xpdf 4.04 will deadlock on a PDF object stream whose "Length" field is itself in another object stream.

An excessively large PDF page size (found in fuzz testing, unlikely in normal PDF files) can result in a divide-by-zero in Xpdf's text extraction code. This is related to CVE-2022-30524, but the problem here is caused by a very large page size, rather than by a very large character coordinate.

In Xpdf 4.04 (and earlier), a PDF object loop in the page label tree leads to infinite recursion and a stack overflow.

Buffer Overflow vulnerability found in XPDF v.4.04 allows an attacker to cause a Denial of Service via the PDFDoc malloc in the pdftotext.cc function. NOTE: Vendor states “it's an expected abort on out-of-memory error.”

Stack overflow vulnerability in function gmalloc in goo/gmem.cc in xpdf 4.04, allows local attackers to cause a denial of service.

Buffer Overflow vulnerability in pdfimages in xpdf 4.03 allows attackers to crash the application via crafted command.

A stack overflow in the Catalog::readPageLabelTree2(Object*) function of XPDF v4.04 allows attackers to cause a Denial of Service (DoS) via a crafted PDF file.

XPDF v4.04 was discovered to contain a stack overflow via the function FileStream::copy() at xpdf/Stream.cc:795.

An issue was discovered in Xpdf 4.04. There is a crash in gfseek(_IO_FILE*, long, int) in goo/gfile.cc.

There is a use-after-free issue in JBIG2Stream::close() located in JBIG2Stream.cc in Xpdf 4.04. It can be triggered by sending a crafted PDF file to (for example) the pdfimages binary. It allows an attacker to cause Denial of Service or possibly have unspecified other impact.

XPDF 4.04 is vulnerable to Null Pointer Dereference in FoFiType1C.cc:2393.

XPDF v4.04 and earlier was discovered to contain a stack overflow via the function Catalog::countPageTree() at Catalog.cc.

XPDF v4.0.4 was discovered to contain a segmentation violation via the component /xpdf/AcroForm.cc:538.

Xpdf prior to version 4.04 contains an integer overflow in the JBIG2 decoder (JBIG2Stream::readTextRegionSeg() in JBIG2Stream.cc). Processing a specially crafted PDF file or JBIG2 image could lead to a crash or the execution of arbitrary code. This is similar to the vulnerability described by CVE-2021-30860 (Apple CoreGraphics).

XPDF v4.04 was discovered to contain a stack overflow vulnerability via the Object::Copy class of object.cc files.

There is a Null Pointer Dereference vulnerability in the XFAScanner::scanNode() function in XFAScanner.cc in xpdf 4.03.

xpdf 4.04 allocates excessive memory when presented with crafted input. This can be triggered by (for example) sending a crafted PDF document to the pdftoppm binary. It is most easily reproduced with the DCMAKE_CXX_COMPILER=afl-clang-fast++ option.

There is an invalid memory access in the TextLine class in TextOutputDev.cc in Xpdf 4.0.4 because the text extractor mishandles characters at large y coordinates. It can be triggered by (for example) sending a crafted pdf file to the pdftotext binary, which allows a remote attacker to cause a Denial of Service (Segmentation fault) or possibly have unspecified other impact.

xpdf 4.03 has heap buffer overflow in the function readXRefTable located in XRef.cc. An attacker can exploit this bug to cause a Denial of Service (Segmentation fault) or other unspecified effects by sending a crafted PDF file to the pdftoppm binary.

CVE-2021-30860 is an integer overflow (CWE-190) in PDF processing across Apple's platforms that was addressed with improved input validation. It is triggered when a device processes a maliciously crafted PDF — notably when a PDF is rendered after being received via messaging — and successful exploitation allows arbitrary code execution in the context of the PDF renderer. Affected products include iOS/iPadOS, macOS (Big Sur and Catalina), and watchOS, as well as the Xpdf and Poppler PDF libraries, which share lineage with the vulnerable code. Apple confirmed the issue was being actively exploited in the wild, and public reporting ties it to NSO Group's 'ForcedEntry' exploit chain used to deliver Pegasus spyware; CISA added it to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 2021-11-03. Given the very high EPSS score (76%, 99th percentile) and confirmed active exploitation, defenders should treat this as a high-priority patch.

Do: Update iPhones/iPads to iOS/iPadOS 14.8, Macs to macOS Big Sur 11.6 (or apply Security Update 2021-005 Catalina), and Apple Watch to watchOS 7.6.2 immediately, and patch Poppler/Xpdf through distribution or vendor updates. Because the flaw was exploited via crafted PDFs delivered through messaging (ForcedEntry/Pegasus), organizations and individuals at risk of targeted spyware should also review devices for signs of compromise. CISA KEV requires applying updates per vendor instructions; prioritize internet-connected and high-value user endpoints.

Xpdf 4.02 allows stack consumption because of an incorrect subroutine reference in a Type 1C font charstring, related to the FoFiType1C::getOp() function.

In Xpdf 4.02, SplashOutputDev::endType3Char(GfxState *state) SplashOutputDev.cc:3079 is trying to use the freed `t3GlyphStack->cache`, which causes an `heap-use-after-free` problem. The codes of a previous fix for nested Type 3 characters wasn't correctly handling the case where a Type 3 char referred to another char in the same Type 3 font.

There is an invalid memory access in the function fprintf located in Error.cc in Xpdf 4.0.2. It can be triggered by sending a crafted PDF file to the pdftohtml binary, which allows a remote attacker to cause a Denial of Service (Segmentation fault) or possibly have unspecified other impact.

An issue was discovered in Xpdf 4.01.01. There is an FPE in the function PostScriptFunction::exec at Function.cc for the psOpIdiv case.

There is an invalid memory access in the function GfxIndexedColorSpace::mapColorToBase() located in GfxState.cc in Xpdf 4.0.0, as used in pdfalto 0.2. It can be triggered by (for example) sending a crafted pdf file to the pdftops binary. It allows an attacker to cause Denial of Service (Segmentation fault) or possibly have unspecified other impact.