Details
PDFs have evolved from static pages to complex documents with features such as interactive forms, multimedia content, scripting, and other capabilities. These features leave PDFs vulnerable to malicious scripts or actions that can damage the computer or steal data. The Enhanced security feature protects the computer against these threats by blocking or selectively permitting actions for trusted locations and files.
Enhanced Security determines if a PDF is viewed within a standalone application. A threat to users of Adobe Reader DC is opening a PDF file that contains malicious executable content.
Enhanced Security ‘hardens’ the application against risky actions: prevents cross domain access, prohibits script and data injection, blocks stream access to XObjects, silent printing, and execution of high privilege JavaScript.
Satisfies: SRG-APP-000112, SRG-APP-000206, SRG-APP-000207, SRG-APP-000209, SRG-APP-000210
Solution
Configure the following registry value:
Registry Hive: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
Registry Path: SoftwarePoliciesAdobeAcrobat Reader2015FeatureLockDown
Value Name: bEnhancedSecurityStandalone
Type: REG_DWORD
Value: 1
Supportive Information
The following resource is also helpful.
This security hardening control applies to the following category of controls within NIST 800-53: System and Communications Protection.This control applies to the following type of system Windows.
References
- 800-53|SC-18(1)
- 800-53|SC-18(3)
- 800-53|SC-18(4)
- CAT|II
- CCI|CCI-001166
- CCI|CCI-001169
- CCI|CCI-001170
- CCI|CCI-001662
- CCI|CCI-001695
- Rule-ID|SV-213141r557349_rule
- STIG-ID|ARDC-CL-000005
- STIG-Legacy|SV-80219
- STIG-Legacy|V-65729
- Vuln-ID|V-213141