CVE-2023-48586 in Experience Manager
Summary
by MITRE • 12/15/2023
Adobe Experience Manager versions 6.5.18 and earlier are affected by a stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability that could be abused by a low-privileged attacker to inject malicious scripts into vulnerable form fields. Malicious JavaScript may be executed in a victim’s browser when they browse to the page containing the vulnerable field.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/20/2025
Adobe Experience Manager represents a comprehensive digital experience platform that serves as a content management system for enterprise organizations. The platform provides robust features for creating, managing, and delivering digital content across multiple channels while maintaining security through various authentication and authorization mechanisms. However, this particular vulnerability affects the core functionality of form handling within the application, creating a critical security gap that undermines the platform's integrity. The affected versions 6.5.18 and earlier contain a fundamental flaw in how user input is processed and rendered within form fields, specifically in the context of stored XSS attacks. This vulnerability exists because the platform fails to adequately sanitize user-provided data before storing and subsequently rendering it in web pages. The flaw particularly impacts form fields where user input is persisted in the database and later displayed without proper HTML encoding or validation mechanisms. Attackers exploiting this vulnerability can craft malicious JavaScript payloads that get stored within the application's database and executed whenever legitimate users view the affected pages containing these compromised form fields. The security implications extend beyond simple script execution as this vulnerability can be leveraged to perform session hijacking, steal sensitive cookies, redirect users to malicious domains, or even execute more sophisticated attacks like credential theft.
The technical nature of this vulnerability aligns with CWE-79 which specifically addresses Cross-Site Scripting flaws in software applications. This classification indicates that the vulnerability stems from improper input validation and output encoding practices within the application's data handling pipeline. The attack vector operates through a stored XSS pattern where malicious input is first submitted to the application and then stored in a database or similar persistent storage mechanism. When legitimate users access pages containing the compromised data, the malicious script executes within their browser context without their knowledge. This type of vulnerability is particularly dangerous because it can persist for extended periods and affect multiple users who encounter the compromised content. The low-privileged attacker profile suggests that the vulnerability does not require elevated privileges to exploit, making it accessible to users with basic access rights to the application's form submission functionality. This characteristic significantly increases the attack surface and potential impact as adversaries with minimal privileges can still compromise the application's security posture. The vulnerability's exploitation does not require complex attack chains or specialized tools, making it a particularly concerning issue for organizations relying on Adobe Experience Manager for their digital operations.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends far beyond simple script execution and represents a fundamental breach of user trust and application security. Organizations using affected versions of Adobe Experience Manager face potential data breaches, user privacy violations, and compromise of sensitive information stored within the platform. The stored nature of the vulnerability means that once exploited, the malicious scripts can affect any user who accesses the compromised pages, creating a persistent threat that can escalate over time. Attackers can leverage this vulnerability to establish persistent access patterns, harvest user credentials, or redirect traffic to phishing sites that mimic legitimate application interfaces. The financial implications of such an attack can be substantial, including regulatory fines, legal liability, and damage to brand reputation. Organizations may also face compliance violations under various data protection regulations that mandate proper security controls for handling user data. The vulnerability's presence in the form handling component suggests that any user input processing functionality within the application could be at risk, potentially affecting multiple areas of the platform. This widespread potential impact requires comprehensive security assessments and immediate remediation efforts to prevent exploitation.
Organizations should prioritize immediate mitigation strategies to address this vulnerability in their Adobe Experience Manager deployments. The most effective approach involves applying the official security patches released by Adobe, which typically include enhanced input sanitization and output encoding mechanisms. System administrators should also implement additional security controls such as web application firewalls that can detect and block suspicious script patterns in form submissions. Input validation should be strengthened at multiple layers including client-side and server-side validation to ensure that all user-provided data undergoes proper sanitization before being processed or stored. Regular security scanning and penetration testing should be conducted to identify any additional vulnerabilities within the application's form handling components. Organizations should also implement proper access controls and monitoring to detect unauthorized form submissions or unusual user behavior patterns that might indicate exploitation attempts. The mitigation strategy should include comprehensive user education to raise awareness about the risks of submitting untrusted content and the importance of maintaining updated security configurations. Security teams should establish incident response procedures specifically designed to handle XSS-related security events and ensure rapid containment and remediation when such vulnerabilities are detected. Regular security assessments should be performed to validate that the implemented controls remain effective against evolving threat landscapes and that no new vulnerabilities have been introduced through customizations or third-party integrations.