CVE-2025-47103 Overview
CVE-2025-47103 is a heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability [CWE-122] affecting Adobe InDesign Desktop versions 19.5.3 and earlier. The flaw allows arbitrary code execution in the context of the current user when a victim opens a malicious file. Exploitation requires user interaction, limiting opportunistic attacks but enabling targeted social engineering campaigns against design and publishing workflows. Adobe published the issue on July 8, 2025 under advisory APSB25-60. The vulnerability affects InDesign installations on both Microsoft Windows and Apple macOS platforms.
Critical Impact
Successful exploitation grants attackers arbitrary code execution at the privilege level of the InDesign user, enabling malware installation, data theft, and lateral movement.
Affected Products
- Adobe InDesign Desktop versions 19.5.3 and earlier
- Apple macOS (InDesign installations)
- Microsoft Windows (InDesign installations)
Discovery Timeline
- 2025-07-08 - CVE-2025-47103 published to the National Vulnerability Database
- 2026-06-17 - Last updated in NVD database
Technical Details for CVE-2025-47103
Vulnerability Analysis
The vulnerability is a heap-based buffer overflow within Adobe InDesign Desktop's file parsing logic. When InDesign processes a crafted document, the application writes data beyond the bounds of an allocated heap buffer. The overflow corrupts adjacent heap structures, including object metadata and function pointers. An attacker who controls the overflow contents can redirect execution flow and run arbitrary code as the current user.
The attack vector is local and requires user interaction, meaning the victim must open a malicious InDesign document. Threat actors typically deliver such files through phishing emails, compromised file-sharing platforms, or trojanized design asset bundles. Because InDesign frequently runs with standard user privileges on creative workstations, exploitation provides access to sensitive design assets, intellectual property, and credentials stored in the user profile.
Root Cause
The root cause is improper validation of input lengths or counts during heap buffer allocation and write operations. Adobe's advisory categorizes the issue as a heap-based buffer overflow [CWE-122], indicating that a parser routine fails to enforce bounds checks before copying attacker-controlled data into a dynamically allocated buffer.
Attack Vector
An attacker crafts a malicious InDesign file containing data structures that trigger the overflow during parsing. The file is delivered to a victim through email, web download, or shared storage. When the victim opens the file in a vulnerable InDesign version, the parser allocates an undersized heap buffer and writes oversized attacker-controlled content into it. The corruption is leveraged to hijack control flow and execute shellcode in the InDesign process.
No public proof-of-concept exploit code is currently available for CVE-2025-47103. See the Adobe InDesign Security Advisory APSB25-60 for vendor-provided technical details.
Detection Methods for CVE-2025-47103
Indicators of Compromise
- Unexpected child processes spawned by InDesign.exe on Windows or Adobe InDesign on macOS, particularly shells, scripting engines, or LOLBins.
- InDesign process crashes or anomalous memory access violations correlated with opening .indd, .indt, .idml, or other design files from untrusted sources.
- Outbound network connections originating from the InDesign process to unfamiliar domains or IP addresses.
Detection Strategies
- Monitor process lineage for InDesign spawning command interpreters such as cmd.exe, powershell.exe, bash, or osascript.
- Inspect endpoint telemetry for InDesign writing executables, scripts, or scheduled task entries to disk.
- Correlate email gateway logs with endpoint file-open events to identify weaponized design files delivered through phishing.
Monitoring Recommendations
- Enable detailed process creation auditing on workstations used by design and marketing teams.
- Track InDesign version inventory across endpoints to confirm patch coverage against 19.5.3 and earlier builds.
- Alert on InDesign loading unusual modules or making network connections outside Adobe-related infrastructure.
How to Mitigate CVE-2025-47103
Immediate Actions Required
- Update Adobe InDesign Desktop to the version specified in Adobe security advisory APSB25-60 on all Windows and macOS endpoints.
- Restrict opening of InDesign files received from external or untrusted sources until patching is verified.
- Communicate the threat to design, marketing, and publishing teams who routinely process external .indd files.
Patch Information
Adobe released fixed versions of InDesign Desktop addressing CVE-2025-47103. Refer to the Adobe InDesign Security Advisory APSB25-60 for specific updated version numbers and download instructions for both Windows and macOS platforms.
Workarounds
- Run InDesign under a standard user account with no administrative privileges to limit the impact of code execution.
- Enforce email and web gateway filtering for InDesign file extensions originating from external senders.
- Apply application allowlisting to prevent InDesign from launching unauthorized child processes.
Disclaimer: This content was generated using AI. While we strive for accuracy, please verify critical information with official sources.
