Run time error 53 and acrobat freezing up 'not responding"

The long-term failure to address this significant issue through a software update or meaningful help to the community is quite frustrating.  Fortunately, there are now a number of Acrobat substitutes that can do everything I need to do.  If this issue persists when Adobe stops "supporting" the version I already paid for, I'm planning to switch .pdf programs.

There may be more to this problem, with the roll-out of Mac OS 15 Sequoia. The above fixes do not solve the problem. 

Note to anyone reading: my comments below describeS a test I am doing for a longer-term solution, I'm not asserting that it works.

Thanks @LuckySlam for the automatable commands. Either manually deleting the add-in files that Acrobat installs as discussed here & elsewhere, or using those commands provides a useful temporary solution.

I just had a user report the same issue. In trying to find a longer term solution, I:

Did touch linkCreation.dotm in the Startup.localized/Word/ directory. My idea was to create a blank version of the template file then make it unwriteable, so Adobe can't replace it. Unfortunately, when restarting Word it presents an error "The add-in template is not valid.", so that won't work.

Next, I deleted the add-in files as normal, then used the Finder Get Info - Lock function to prevent changing the Word and Powerpoint folders inside Startup.localized/ .

The command chflags -R uchg ~/Library/Group\ Containers/UBF8T346G9.Office/User\ Content.localized/Startup.localized/Word/ should accomplish the same thing, and can be done also with Powerpoint/ if needed.

I'll have to see after the next Acrobat update if the problem re-occurs.

There are many things that contribute to this "Error 53". 

Sometimes, many users come to the Adobe forums to express frustration(s) while at the same time expecting to get a quick and easy "microwave-tv-dinner-generation" answer to issues that require a deep technical knowledge.

From the standpoint of a technical support person, if I was the technical support guy I would say that I can't tell what is going on unless I get full access to all user-activity logs and analyze how the user has been installing and deploying software in that computer.

For instance, the operating system that you're using, the Microsoft Office version deployed in that Unix-like system, and the fact that the Adobe Acrobat PDF Maker add-in actually triggers a compatibility issue with your system requirements are all piece of the puzzle; therefore, Adobe Inc. as a whole can't be defined as "malware".

Have you used the Adobe Genuine Service:

• https://helpx.adobe.com/genuine/adobe-genuine-service.html

And have you also checked that all other software in that computer is genuine and properly licensed?

So this looks to me more like a glitch or simply disgruntled average macOS user(s) lacking knowledge in how to diagnose, analyze and troubleshoot their own software/hardware errors.

I am taking care in highlighting this fact to make a valid point in differintiating what "malware" is NOT defined as.

But if you feel that the Adobe Acrobat extension (or Adobe Inc. as a whole entity ... as you've claimed) is "malware",  AND, if you really do have a deep technical understanding of how your Unix-based operating system works with other software, such as Microsoft Office [ which has been notriously known for decades to have backdoors that allow cybercriminals to exploit Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) programming code with malware and, therefore, to intentionally exploit backdoors in more computers that results in the further spreading of computer viruses, trojans, worms, ransomware, spyware, phishing or sacamming attempts, or any other type of malicious software that goes undetected in the wild ] ,  then by all means use the links below to report such activities to Adobe or any concerning parties:

• https://www.adobe.com/trust/fraud-prevention.html
• https://helpx.adobe.com/security/alertus.html

In the meanwhile you can try and fix it yourself using some of the tips offered in the links below:

• https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/msoffice/forum/all/new-error-run-time-error-53-macpdfm/75a8a130-ad60-4ebd-8785-a0328de58134
• https://apple.stackexchange.com/questions/407353/how-to-fix-run-time-error-53-every-time-i-open-a-document-in-word-or-a-worksheet
• https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/msoffice/forum/all/file-not-found-error-53-on-every-startup-and-quit/40d7cff2-6d41-4e03-b21f-a4db39d9881b
• https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/msoffice/forum/all/new-error-run-time-error-53-macpdfm/75a8a130-ad60-4ebd-8785-a0328de58134