CVE-2017-3109 in Experience Manager
Summary
by MITRE
An issue was discovered in Adobe Experience Manager 6.3, 6.2, 6.1, 6.0. Adobe Experience Manager has a reflected cross-site scripting vulnerability in the HtmlRendererServlet.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/26/2021
Adobe Experience Manager represents a comprehensive content management platform widely adopted by enterprises for digital publishing and web content management. The platform serves as a central hub for creating, managing, and delivering digital experiences across multiple channels. This particular vulnerability affects multiple versions including 6.3, 6.2, 6.1, and 6.0, indicating a significant exposure across the product lifecycle. The HtmlRendererServlet component within this system processes HTML content and renders it for web presentation, making it a critical pathway for user interaction with the platform's content rendering capabilities.
The reflected cross-site scripting vulnerability in the HtmlRendererServlet manifests when the system fails to properly sanitize user input before incorporating it into HTML responses. This flaw allows malicious actors to inject malicious scripts that execute in the context of a victim's browser session. The vulnerability specifically occurs when user-supplied parameters are reflected back to the browser without adequate input validation or output encoding. Attackers can craft malicious URLs containing script payloads that, when clicked by an unsuspecting user, execute in the victim's browser and potentially steal session cookies, perform unauthorized actions, or redirect users to malicious sites. This type of vulnerability falls under CWE-79 which specifically addresses cross-site scripting flaws in web applications.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script execution, as it can enable sophisticated attack chains within enterprise environments. An attacker who successfully exploits this vulnerability could potentially escalate privileges, access sensitive content, or compromise the entire content management system. The reflected nature of the vulnerability means that attacks are typically delivered through social engineering techniques where users are tricked into clicking malicious links. Given that Adobe Experience Manager is frequently used by organizations for managing sensitive corporate information, the potential for data exfiltration or system compromise is substantial. The vulnerability also aligns with ATT&CK technique T1059.001 which covers command and scripting interpreter, as attackers can leverage XSS to execute malicious scripts that may then facilitate further exploitation.
Organizations utilizing affected Adobe Experience Manager versions should prioritize immediate remediation through official patches provided by Adobe. The vulnerability requires proper input validation and output encoding mechanisms to be implemented at the HtmlRendererServlet level. Security controls should include comprehensive web application firewall rules that can detect and block malicious script payloads in HTTP requests. Additionally, implementing content security policies can provide defense-in-depth measures to prevent script execution. Regular security assessments and penetration testing should be conducted to identify similar vulnerabilities in other components of the platform. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of secure coding practices and input sanitization in enterprise web applications, particularly those handling user-generated content. Organizations should also consider implementing user education programs to reduce the risk of successful social engineering attacks that exploit this vulnerability.