CVE-2024-26043 in Experience Manager
Summary
by MITRE • 03/18/2024
Adobe Experience Manager versions 6.5.19 and earlier are affected by a stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability that could be abused by an 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 • 04/16/2025
Adobe Experience Manager represents a comprehensive digital experience platform that powers numerous enterprise websites and web applications. The platform's form handling capabilities allow content authors to create interactive forms that collect user data and process submissions. This particular vulnerability resides within the form field processing functionality of Adobe Experience Manager versions 6.5.19 and earlier, creating a critical security gap that directly impacts the platform's integrity and user safety. The stored XSS vulnerability specifically targets the way the system handles user input in form fields, where malicious scripts can be persistently injected and later executed when other users interact with these compromised forms.
The technical flaw manifests in the insufficient sanitization and validation of user-supplied input within form fields. When content authors or administrators create or modify forms, the system fails to properly escape or filter potentially malicious script content that users might submit through form inputs. This weakness allows attackers to inject JavaScript code directly into form fields that are then stored within the application's database or configuration files. The vulnerability is classified as a stored XSS issue because the malicious payload is permanently saved and executed each time the affected page is rendered, rather than being a reflected XSS where the attack is delivered through a link or email. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-79, which specifically addresses Cross-Site Scripting flaws in web applications, and represents a critical weakness in input validation and output encoding.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends far beyond simple data corruption or display issues. An attacker who successfully exploits this vulnerability can execute arbitrary JavaScript code in the context of any user's browser who views the compromised form page. This opens the door to numerous malicious activities including session hijacking, credential theft, redirection to malicious sites, and data exfiltration. The attack vector is particularly dangerous because it leverages the trust relationship between users and the legitimate website, making it difficult for users to detect the compromise. The vulnerability can be exploited by any authenticated user with form creation or modification privileges, potentially allowing internal attackers to compromise the system. According to ATT&CK framework, this vulnerability maps to T1531 - Account Access Token Manipulation and T1071.1 - Application Layer Protocol: Web Protocols, as it enables attackers to manipulate application functionality and exploit web-based vulnerabilities.
Organizations using affected Adobe Experience Manager versions should immediately implement comprehensive mitigation strategies to protect their systems and users. The primary remediation involves upgrading to Adobe Experience Manager version 6.5.20 or later, which includes proper input sanitization and output encoding mechanisms that prevent malicious script injection. Additionally, administrators should implement strict input validation policies that filter and sanitize all user-supplied content before storage, particularly focusing on common JavaScript patterns and encoding sequences. Network-based protections such as web application firewalls and content security policies should be configured to detect and block suspicious script patterns. Regular security assessments and penetration testing should be conducted to identify potential injection points, while access controls should be strictly enforced to limit form modification privileges to trusted administrators only. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of proper input validation and output encoding in web applications, as outlined in OWASP Top Ten Project recommendations for preventing XSS vulnerabilities.