CVE-2025-49524: Adobe Illustrator NULL Pointer DOS Vulnerability

CVE-2025-49524 Overview

CVE-2025-49524 is a NULL pointer dereference vulnerability [CWE-476] affecting Adobe Illustrator versions 28.7.6, 29.5.1, and earlier on Windows and macOS. The flaw allows an attacker to crash the application by tricking a victim into opening a malicious file. Successful exploitation results in a denial-of-service condition against the Illustrator process. The vulnerability requires local file access and user interaction, and it does not enable code execution or data disclosure.

Critical Impact
An attacker who convinces a user to open a crafted file can terminate the Illustrator process, disrupting design workflows and potentially causing loss of unsaved work.

Affected Products

Adobe Illustrator 28.7.6 and earlier (2024 release)
Adobe Illustrator 29.5.1 and earlier (2025 release)
Microsoft Windows and Apple macOS installations of the affected Illustrator versions

Discovery Timeline

2025-07-08 - CVE-2025-49524 published to NVD
2026-06-17 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-49524

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability is a NULL pointer dereference in Adobe Illustrator's file parsing logic. When Illustrator processes a specially crafted file, code paths dereference a pointer without validating that it references a valid object. The dereference triggers an access violation and terminates the application. Because the affected code executes during file parsing, the crash occurs before the user can interact further with the document.

The issue is scoped to availability. Confidentiality and integrity are not impacted, and the flaw does not chain into memory corruption suitable for arbitrary code execution based on available advisory information.

Root Cause

The root cause is missing input validation on a data structure produced during parsing of an untrusted file format. The parser assumes an intermediate object is initialized, but a crafted file causes the allocation or lookup to return a null reference. Dereferencing this reference in subsequent processing raises an unhandled exception. This pattern is characteristic of [CWE-476: NULL Pointer Dereference].

Attack Vector

Exploitation requires local access and user interaction. An attacker delivers a malicious Illustrator-compatible file through email, a shared drive, a download link, or a collaboration platform. When the victim opens the file in a vulnerable version of Illustrator, the parser triggers the null dereference and the application crashes. The attacker does not need prior privileges on the target host, and the attack complexity is low. No verified proof-of-concept code is publicly available.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-49524

Indicators of Compromise

Unexpected termination of Illustrator.exe (Windows) or the Adobe Illustrator process (macOS) shortly after opening a document
Windows Error Reporting (WER) or macOS crash reports referencing Illustrator with an access violation or EXC_BAD_ACCESS at a null address
Recurring crashes tied to a specific file received from an external source

Detection Strategies

Collect and correlate application crash telemetry from endpoints running Adobe Illustrator to identify repeated failures on the same file hash
Monitor email and file-sharing gateways for Illustrator-compatible file formats (.ai, .eps, .svg, .pdf) originating from untrusted senders
Enrich endpoint telemetry with process exit codes and faulting module names to distinguish parsing crashes from unrelated instability

Monitoring Recommendations

Alert on Illustrator process crashes that occur within seconds of a file-open event
Track file provenance for design assets opened by users in creative teams and flag files sourced from external domains
Aggregate crash reports centrally so repeat crashes across multiple users on the same artifact surface as a single investigation

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-49524

Immediate Actions Required

Update Adobe Illustrator to the fixed versions listed in Adobe's advisory as soon as possible
Instruct users not to open Illustrator files received from untrusted or unverified sources until patches are applied
Inventory endpoints running Illustrator 28.7.6, 29.5.1, or earlier and prioritize them for remediation

Patch Information

Adobe released fixed builds in security bulletin Adobe Security Advisory APSB25-65. Administrators should deploy the updated Illustrator versions through the Adobe Creative Cloud desktop application or an enterprise software distribution tool. Verify installed versions after deployment to confirm the patch is applied.

Workarounds

Restrict opening of Illustrator files to those originating from trusted internal repositories
Use a sandboxed or isolated workstation to preview Illustrator files received from external parties
Ensure users save work frequently and enable Illustrator's auto-recovery feature to limit disruption from any residual crashes

bash

# Verify installed Adobe Illustrator version on Windows via PowerShell
Get-ItemProperty "HKLM:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\*" |
  Where-Object { $_.DisplayName -like "Adobe Illustrator*" } |
  Select-Object DisplayName, DisplayVersion