Foxit user? Get it patched!

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400 million Foxit users need to catch up with patched-up reader

Foxit have patched 12 dangerous vulnerabilities that could have resulted in remote code execution. Some 400 million users run the flagship reader billed as an alternative to Adobe Reader.

Or uninstall it and switch to Sumatra for a reader, maybe PDFXCview for form support?

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As a long-time Foxit Reader user, I’ve just installed the update (Thanks, satrow) and I see Foxit has returned to trying to foist its Cloud service and more, like hijack your web browser.

I suggest the following:

1. Remove both ticks from the checkboxes in the ConnectedPDF dialog that pops up when you first run Foxit Reader 8. Click on the Apply Settings button.

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2. Select File > Preferences.

3. On the Cloud Reading tab, change the default option from Request from server to Disable extras tab.

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4. On the ConnectedPDF tab, change the default How to show web pages option from Open web page within Foxit Reader to Open web pages in your default browser.

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5. Click on the OK button to exit the Preferences dialog.

Close and restart Foxit Reader for these changes to take effect.

Hope this helps…

Hope this helps…

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Agreed on the early points but on the last, I’d stick with opening pdfs in the reader, that should be more secure, especially if your browser is tied into the OS – IE/Edge.

You might also want to check what the defaults are for scripting actions, none is safer.

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Agreed on the early points but on the last, I’d stick with opening pdfs in the reader, that should be more secure, especially if your browser is tied into the OS – IE/Edge.

The last point was about opening web pages in the reader, not PDF’s. With this release, Foxit has decided by default to hijack the opening of web pages in your default browser, which you may have customised with the addition of ad-blockers, NoScript, etc. I suggested changing this back to using your browser again.

I absolutely detest programs that arbitrarily decide to change MY preferences, especially without any prior warning whatsoever.

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Sorry, Rick, I misread it. Web pages in a reader? – just say NO!

Agree on any program update changing/resetting preferences without any warning/options during install, that’s bad form.

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I also ditched Foxit recently, just seemed too intrusive for my liking.
I now use the portable version of PDF-XChange viewer, which works fine.

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I switched to the PDFXCview replacement PDF-XChange Viewer, but it doesn’t have much functionality in “document from scanner” – it also adds a watermark to saved PDFs created this way. Now back to Foxit with the mods suggested by Rick, plus I disabled most of the plug-ins for good measure.

cheers, Paul

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