CVE-2016-0956 in Experience Manager
Summary
by MITRE
The Servlets Post component 2.3.6 in Apache Sling, as used in Adobe Experience Manager 5.6.1, 6.0.0, and 6.1.0, allows remote attackers to obtain sensitive information via unspecified vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/20/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2016-0956 affects the Servlets Post component version 2.3.6 within Apache Sling, a web application framework that serves as the foundation for Adobe Experience Manager platforms. This issue represents a sensitive information disclosure vulnerability that impacts Adobe Experience Manager versions 5.6.1, 6.0.0, and 6.1.0, creating potential security risks for organizations relying on these platforms for content management and digital experience delivery. The vulnerability stems from improper handling of certain HTTP requests that allow unauthorized access to internal system information through unspecified attack vectors.
The technical flaw manifests in the way the Servlets Post component processes incoming requests, specifically when handling POST operations that involve sensitive data exposure. This component, which is integral to how Apache Sling manages servlet-based web applications, fails to properly validate or sanitize input parameters that could lead to information leakage. Attackers can exploit this weakness to retrieve system metadata, configuration details, or other confidential information that should remain restricted to authorized personnel only. The vulnerability operates at the application layer and leverages the inherent design of the component's request processing mechanism to bypass normal access controls.
The operational impact of CVE-2016-0956 extends beyond simple information disclosure, as the leaked data could enable more sophisticated attacks against the affected systems. An attacker who successfully exploits this vulnerability could gain insights into the internal architecture, system configurations, and potentially identify additional attack vectors or weaknesses within the Adobe Experience Manager environment. This information disclosure could facilitate further exploitation attempts, including but not limited to privilege escalation, denial of service attacks, or targeted attacks against specific system components. The vulnerability particularly affects organizations using Adobe Experience Manager for enterprise content management, as it exposes critical system information that could compromise the overall security posture.
Organizations should prioritize immediate remediation of this vulnerability by upgrading to patched versions of Adobe Experience Manager that address the information disclosure issue in the Servlets Post component. The recommended mitigation strategy involves applying the official security patches provided by Adobe, which typically include code modifications that properly validate and sanitize input parameters to prevent unauthorized information access. Additionally, implementing network-level controls such as firewall rules to restrict access to sensitive endpoints and monitoring for unusual request patterns can provide additional defense-in-depth measures. Security teams should also conduct thorough vulnerability assessments to identify any potential exploitation attempts and ensure proper access controls are in place to limit the attack surface. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-200, which specifically addresses information exposure, and represents a concern for organizations following ATT&CK framework's initial access and reconnaissance phases where threat actors seek to gather intelligence about target systems before executing more destructive attacks.