CVE-2024-26042 in Experience Manager
Summary
by MITRE • 03/18/2024
Adobe Experience Manager versions 6.5.19 and earlier are affected by a DOM-based Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability that could be abused by an attacker to inject malicious scripts into vulnerable web pages. Malicious JavaScript may be executed in a victim’s browser when they browse to the page containing the vulnerable script. This could result in arbitrary code execution in the context of the victim's browser.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/16/2025
Adobe Experience Manager versions 6.5.19 and earlier contain a critical DOM-based cross-site scripting vulnerability that represents a significant threat to web application security. This vulnerability falls under the CWE-79 category of Cross-Site Scripting, specifically manifesting as a DOM-based XSS flaw that allows attackers to inject malicious scripts directly into the Document Object Model of web pages. The vulnerability exists within the application's handling of user-supplied input that is subsequently processed and rendered in the browser environment without proper sanitization or encoding mechanisms. Attackers can exploit this weakness by crafting malicious payloads that manipulate the DOM structure to execute unauthorized JavaScript code within the victim's browser context.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs when user-provided data is improperly handled within the web application's JavaScript code, allowing malicious input to be interpreted as executable script rather than benign data. This DOM-based variant is particularly dangerous because it operates entirely within the browser environment without requiring server-side processing, making it more difficult to detect and prevent through traditional server-side security measures. The vulnerability's impact extends beyond simple script execution to potentially enable full session hijacking, credential theft, and arbitrary code execution within the victim's browser. When victims browse to compromised pages containing the malicious scripts, their browsers execute the injected JavaScript code with the privileges and permissions of the authenticated user session.
From an operational standpoint, this vulnerability presents a severe risk to organizations utilizing Adobe Experience Manager as their content management platform, particularly those with high-value user interactions or sensitive data handling processes. The attack surface is broad since AEM is commonly used for enterprise websites, digital marketing platforms, and customer-facing applications where user input is frequently processed and displayed. The vulnerability's exploitation requires minimal privileges and can be automated through various attack vectors including phishing campaigns, compromised web pages, or social engineering tactics. Security professionals should note that this vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1566.001 for initial access through spearphishing attachments and T1059.007 for command and scripting interpreter for PowerShell and other scripting languages in the execution phase.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigation strategies including updating to Adobe Experience Manager version 6.5.20 or later, which contains the necessary patches to address this vulnerability. Additionally, implementing comprehensive input validation and output encoding mechanisms within the application's JavaScript code can help prevent malicious DOM manipulation. Security teams should also consider deploying web application firewalls and content security policies to add additional layers of protection. Regular security assessments and penetration testing should be conducted to identify similar vulnerabilities within the application's codebase, as DOM-based XSS flaws often occur in complex web applications with extensive client-side scripting components. The vulnerability's classification as a critical risk warrants immediate attention from security operations teams and should be prioritized alongside other high-severity threats in vulnerability management programs.