CVE-2026-81973: Acrobat Reader | Use After Free (CWE-416)

Q: Who is exposed to exploitation?

Users of Adobe Acrobat Reader are exposed when they open a malicious file. Successful exploitation can execute code with the privileges of the current user.

Q: What must an attacker do to exploit this issue?

An attacker must provide a malicious file and persuade or otherwise cause the victim to open it in Acrobat Reader. The issue has local attack vector and requires user interaction; no attacker privileges are required.

Published Sep 8, 2026

Updated

Acrobat Reader is affected by a Use After Free vulnerability that could result in arbitrary code execution in the context of the current user. Exploitation of this issue requires user interaction in that a victim must open a malicious file.

Affected Software

6 affected components

Adobe Acrobat Reader

All of the following

Any of the following

Adobe Acrobat>=24.001.20604<24.001.30429

Adobe Acrobat DC>=15.008.20082<26.002.21901

Adobe Acrobat Reader DC>=15.008.20082<26.002.21901

Any of the following

Apple macOS

Microsoft Windows

Event History

Sep 8, 2026

CVE Published

via MITRE·08:31 PM

Data Sourced

via MITRE·08:31 PM

DescriptionSeverityWeakness

Data Sourced

via NVD·09:18 PM

DescriptionSeverityWeaknessAffected Software

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is exposed to exploitation?

Users of Adobe Acrobat Reader are exposed when they open a malicious file. Successful exploitation can execute code with the privileges of the current user.

What must an attacker do to exploit this issue?