CVE-2019-8087 in Experience Manager
Summary
by MITRE
Adobe Experience Manager versions 6.5, 6.4, 6.3 and 6.2 have a xml external entity injection vulnerability. Successful exploitation could lead to sensitive information disclosure.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/26/2019
Adobe Experience Manager suffers from a critical xml external entity injection vulnerability that affects versions 6.5, 6.4, 6.3, and 6.2. This vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation within the application's xml processing functionality, allowing attackers to inject malicious external entities into xml documents. The flaw resides in the application's handling of xml data parsing, where external entity references are not properly sanitized or restricted. When processing xml content, the system fails to disable external entity resolution, creating an attack surface that enables unauthorized access to internal resources. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-611, which specifically addresses improper restriction of XML external entity reference, making it a prime target for information disclosure attacks. Attackers can exploit this weakness by crafting malicious xml payloads that reference external resources, potentially exposing internal system information, file contents, or network configurations. The impact extends beyond simple data leakage as this vulnerability can serve as a stepping stone for more sophisticated attacks. According to ATT&CK framework, this represents a technique under T1071.004 for application layer protocol and T1082 for system information discovery. The vulnerability's exploitation typically requires minimal privileges and can be executed through various attack vectors including file uploads, api endpoints, or web forms that accept xml input. Organizations running affected versions face significant risk as the flaw can be leveraged to extract sensitive configuration data, database connection strings, or other proprietary information. The attack surface is particularly concerning given that Adobe Experience Manager is widely deployed in enterprise environments where it often handles sensitive customer data and business-critical content management operations. Security practitioners should note that this vulnerability can be particularly dangerous in cloud environments where internal network resources are accessible through the xml processing components. The exploitation chain typically involves crafting xml documents with external entity declarations that reference internal resources or external servers controlled by the attacker. This enables data exfiltration and can potentially lead to further compromise of the underlying infrastructure. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of input validation and proper xml parsing configurations in web applications, especially those handling content management and enterprise data processing. Organizations must implement immediate mitigations including disabling external entity resolution in xml parsers, implementing strict input validation, and applying the latest security patches provided by Adobe. The flaw also highlights the necessity of regular security assessments and proper configuration management to prevent similar vulnerabilities from persisting in production environments.