High File handling

CVE-2026-21280 — Illustrator | Untrusted Search Path (CWE-426)

Illustrator versions 29.8.3, 30.0 and earlier are affected by an Untrusted Search Path vulnerability that could result in arbitrary code execution in the context of the current user. If the application uses a search path to locate critical resources such as programs, an attacker could modify that search path to point to a malicious program, which the targeted application would then execute. Exploitation of this issue requires user interaction in that a victim must open a malicious file and scope is changed.

Published Jan 13, 2026 · Updated Oct 13, 2026 · Sources: NIST National Vulnerability Database, CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP · CNA: adobe

Low

Who exploits it and how urgent it is

A 0–100 score combining confirmed exploitation, ransomware and APT use, public exploits, EPSS and severity.

No exploitation signal in the sources consulted so far.

How the score was calculated

EPSS 0.3% (30-day exploitation probability)+2
Technical severity (high)+6

The score orders the patch queue; it does not replace your asset context (internet exposure, criticality, compensating controls).

Triage

Is it exploited, how likely is exploitation, what does it touch, and how severe do the sources call it.

Exploitation

Not confirmed

Not in CISA KEV — an absence of record, not proof it is unexploited.

EPSS FIRST

0.26%

ahead of 16% of scored CVEs · Oct 14, 2026

Affects

Adobe

Illustrator and 2 more

CVSS base

8.6

High · 2 source(s)

CISA SSVC assessment CISA

Three decision points CISA publishes for the CVEs it assesses (SSVC 2.0.3). A stakeholder decision, not a severity score.

Exploitation

None

none · proof-of-concept · active

Automatable

can an attacker script the kill-chain steps

Technical impact

Total

partial · total control of the vulnerable component

Remediation

Fixes and mitigations documented by the sources — linked to the original advisory.

No fix documented by the sources we poll. That does not mean none exists: check the vendor advisory.

First 24 hours

Ordered from the record’s own fields — exposure first, because you cannot patch what you have not found. A rule-generated starting point.

Identify exposed assets running the affected vendor/product/version combinations (Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Illustrator Desktop 2025, Adobe Illustrator Desktop 2026).
No fix documented in the sources: reduce exposure and monitor the vendor advisory.
Exploitation requires user interaction: tighten email/web filtering and warn affected users.
Search available logs for exploit probes matching the vulnerability class (file handling), errors and authentication anomalies.

Affected scope

Vendor, product and versions as the sources word them.

Vendor	Product	Versions	Status	Source
Adobe	Illustrator	≥ 29.0 and < 29.8.4version 30.0	Vulnerable	NIST National Vulnerability Database
Adobe	Illustrator Desktop 2025	≤ 29.8.3	Vulnerable	CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Adobe	Illustrator Desktop 2026	≤ 30.0	Vulnerable	CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP

Attack characteristics

The CVSS vector, decoded. It describes the attack, not your exposure to it.

Attack vector

Local

Attack complexity

Low

Privileges required

None

User interaction

Required

Scope

Changed

Confidentiality

High

Integrity

High

Availability

High

Every base score collected

Sources score independently and may disagree; each row says who scored it and under which version.

Score	Version	Severity	Expl.	Impact	Scored by
8.6	CVSS 3.1	High	1.8	6.0	psirt@adobe.com via NIST National Vulnerability Database
8.6	CVSS 3.1	High	—	—	adobe via CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H (score shown at the top: psirt@adobe.com)

Weakness MITRE

Weakness class according to MITRE’s CWE catalog.

CWE-426 · Untrusted Search Path

Other CVEs with this weakness →

EPSS over time FIRST

Oct 13, 2026 → Oct 14, 2026 · 2 reading(s) · max 0.26%

Detection

Read off the CVSS vector and the weakness class. Starting points, not tested rules.

Local/physical vector: focus on endpoint telemetry (EDR) from affected hosts.
Monitor file creation in web directories and paths with traversal sequences (../).

endpoint telemetry (EDR)file integrity (FIM)

Timeline

What happened to this CVE, newest first.

2026
Affected products added · adobe/illustrator desktop 2026, adobe/illustrator desktop 2025
Oct 13, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
SSVC assessment updated
Oct 13, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Record published
Oct 13, 2026
CVSS changed · 8.6
Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
Source status changed · → Analyzed
Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
Record created in this database
Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
CVE published
Jan 13, 2026 · adobe

Source activity

Repeated readings are counted rather than listed.

1× Official description updated · Oct 13, 2026 – Oct 13, 2026

References

1 on the record

helpx.adobe.com/security/products/illustrator/apsb26-03.html
Vendor Advisory, vendor-advisory, NIST National Vulnerability Database

Elsewhere on this site

Adobe
every CVE for this vendor

File handling
same class

CWE-426
other pages naming this weakness

Related CVEs (same products)

Medium CVE-2026-71441 Out-of-bounds Read in Adobe Illustrator Aug 25, 2026
High CVE-2026-48337 Illustrator | Out-of-bounds Write (CWE-787) Jul 14, 2026
High CVE-2026-48335 Illustrator | Out-of-bounds Write (CWE-787) Jul 14, 2026
Critical CVE-2026-48334 Illustrator | Improper Input Validation (CWE-20) Jul 14, 2026
High CVE-2026-48336 Illustrator | Out-of-bounds Write (CWE-787) Jul 14, 2026
High CVE-2026-48275 Illustrator | Untrusted Search Path (CWE-426) Jul 14, 2026

Not in any source we poll

Listed rather than left blank: an empty field and an unmeasured one look identical on screen, and only one is a reason to look elsewhere.

No fixed version, patch or mitigation documented.
No confirmed IOCs, IP addresses, domains, file hashes, or malware artifacts supplied.
No organization-specific asset inventory, compensating-control status, or patch deployment evidence supplied.
No exploit packet captures, log samples, or incident case IDs supplied.

Answered from this record

Text assembled only from the fields above — no additional claims.

What should defenders know first?

CVE-2026-21280 is "Illustrator | Untrusted Search Path (CWE-426)", rated High. It affects Illustrator (Adobe); versions are in the scope table. It is not in CISA KEV, which does not rule out exploitation. CVSS 8.6 describes technical severity. EPSS 0.26% estimates the probability of exploitation in 30 days; neither replaces your asset context. First verify whether exposed or business-critical assets run the affected versions, apply vendor fixes or mitigations, and preserve logs for review.

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