CVE-2026-75863 in Photoshop
Summary
by MITRE • 09/08/2026
Photoshop Desktop is affected by an Integer Overflow or Wraparound 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.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/08/2026
The Adobe Photoshop Desktop application contains a critical integer overflow or wraparound vulnerability within its core image processing engine, specifically affecting how memory buffers are allocated and managed during the parsing of complex graphic files. This flaw arises when the software fails to properly validate arithmetic operations involving buffer sizes or array indices derived from file metadata. When an attacker crafts a malicious file containing specially constructed data fields that trigger these erroneous calculations, the resulting integer value may wrap around to a significantly smaller positive number than intended due to signedness issues or lack of bounds checking. This miscalculation leads the application to allocate insufficient memory for subsequent operations while simultaneously attempting to write beyond the boundaries of the allocated buffer.
From a technical perspective, this vulnerability is classified under CWE-190 Integer Overflow or Wraparound and often facilitates CWE-787 Out-of-bounds Write vulnerabilities when exploited in conjunction with heap corruption techniques. The exploitation mechanism relies on precise control over memory layout, where the attacker manipulates file structures to overwrite adjacent heap metadata or function pointers within the application's process space. By carefully crafting the payload, an adversary can redirect execution flow to arbitrary shellcode injected into the vulnerable buffer area. This type of flaw is particularly dangerous because it bypasses many modern mitigations such as Data Execution Prevention if combined with return-oriented programming techniques, allowing for full control over the instruction pointer and subsequent code execution.
The operational impact of successfully exploiting this vulnerability is severe, resulting in arbitrary code execution within the security context of the currently logged-in user. Since Adobe Photoshop typically runs with standard user privileges rather than administrative rights, an attacker cannot immediately escalate to system-level access without a secondary privilege escalation exploit. However, gaining control over the current user session allows for significant damage including theft of sensitive documents stored locally, installation of persistent malware such as keyloggers or remote access trojans, and use of the compromised machine as part of a botnet. The requirement for user interaction means that this vulnerability is primarily targeted via social engineering tactics where victims are tricked into opening maliciously crafted PSD files disguised as legitimate assets through phishing emails or compromised websites.
To mitigate the risks associated with this vulnerability, organizations should ensure that all instances of Adobe Photoshop Desktop are updated to the latest version provided by Adobe Systems which includes patches for integer validation and memory management checks. Users must be educated on the dangers of opening graphic files from untrusted sources and advised to verify file integrity before processing them in professional design software. Additionally implementing application whitelisting policies can restrict the execution of unsigned binaries, thereby limiting the impact if an exploit attempt occurs by preventing unauthorized code injection into legitimate processes like Photoshop. Network segmentation and endpoint detection systems should also be configured to monitor for anomalous memory access patterns indicative of heap exploitation attempts within creative suite applications.