CVE-2023-47798 in Liferay
Summary
by MITRE • 02/08/2024
Account lockout in Liferay Portal 7.2.0 through 7.3.0, and older unsupported versions, and Liferay DXP 7.2 before fix pack 5, and older unsupported versions does not invalidate existing user sessions, which allows remote authenticated users to remain authenticated after an account has been locked.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/20/2025
The vulnerability described in CVE-2023-47798 represents a critical session management flaw within Liferay Portal and Liferay DXP platforms that affects versions ranging from 7.2.0 through 7.3.0 and their respective older unsupported releases. This issue resides in the account lockout mechanism implementation where the system fails to properly invalidate existing user sessions upon account lockout events, creating a persistent authentication state that undermines the security controls designed to protect against unauthorized access. The flaw specifically impacts the session invalidation process that should occur when an account is locked, leaving authenticated users with active sessions despite their accounts being locked by administrators or security systems.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from the improper handling of session lifecycle management during account lockout operations. When an account lockout occurs, the system should immediately invalidate all existing sessions associated with that user account to prevent continued access. However, in affected versions, the platform maintains active user sessions even after the account has been locked, allowing malicious actors or compromised legitimate users to continue operating within the system using their previously established authenticated sessions. This behavior violates fundamental security principles of session management and access control enforcement, creating a persistent vector for unauthorized access that persists beyond the intended account lockout period.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple session persistence and creates significant risks for organizations relying on Liferay Portal for their enterprise applications. Attackers who gain access to legitimate user credentials can exploit this flaw by using account lockout mechanisms as a form of persistent access, particularly when combined with other attack vectors such as credential theft or insider threats. The vulnerability enables attackers to maintain access to systems even when account lockout policies are properly enforced, undermining the effectiveness of account lockout security controls and potentially allowing for extended periods of unauthorized access to sensitive data and system resources. This issue particularly affects environments where account lockout is used as a security control for detecting and mitigating brute force attacks or compromised accounts.
Organizations affected by this vulnerability should prioritize immediate remediation through the application of available patches or upgrade to supported versions of Liferay Portal and DXP that address the session invalidation flaw. The implementation of compensating controls such as enhanced session monitoring, periodic session validation checks, and additional access control measures should be considered as temporary mitigations while permanent fixes are deployed. Security teams should also conduct comprehensive audits of user sessions and account lockout events to identify any potential exploitation of this vulnerability. This issue aligns with CWE-613, which addresses insufficient session management, and represents a violation of the principle of least privilege and proper access control enforcement. The vulnerability may also be leveraged in conjunction with other attack techniques described in the MITRE ATT&CK framework under the credential access and privilege escalation categories, particularly when attackers seek to maintain persistence within compromised environments. Organizations should implement robust monitoring solutions to detect anomalous session behavior and account lockout patterns that could indicate exploitation of this vulnerability.