CVE-2024-52817 in Experience Manager
Summary
by MITRE • 12/11/2024
Adobe Experience Manager versions 6.5.21 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 • 02/19/2025
Adobe Experience Manager represents a comprehensive content management platform widely deployed across enterprise environments for digital experience management. The platform serves as a central hub for content creation, management, and delivery across multiple channels. This particular vulnerability exists within the form handling mechanisms of AEM versions 6.5.21 and earlier, where user input validation processes fail to adequately sanitize data submitted through form fields. The stored nature of this cross-site scripting vulnerability means that malicious payloads are permanently stored within the application's database or storage systems, making them persistent threats that remain active until manually removed. When legitimate users access pages containing these compromised form fields, their browsers execute the injected JavaScript code within the context of their authenticated sessions. This vulnerability directly maps to CWE-79, which describes improper neutralization of input during web page generation, specifically within the context of stored XSS attacks. The attack vector exploits the fundamental trust relationship between the web application and its users, allowing attackers to manipulate the application's behavior and potentially escalate privileges.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script execution, as it creates opportunities for attackers to perform session hijacking, data exfiltration, and privilege escalation attacks. An attacker could craft malicious scripts that steal session cookies, redirect users to phishing sites, or even modify content in real-time. The persistent nature of stored XSS means that the attack remains effective across multiple user sessions and browsing sessions, unlike reflected XSS which requires specific user interaction with malicious links. This vulnerability particularly affects organizations that rely heavily on AEM for user-facing forms, such as contact forms, feedback systems, or customer registration portals. The attack surface expands when considering that AEM is often integrated with other enterprise systems, potentially allowing attackers to leverage this vulnerability as a stepping stone for broader attacks. From an attacker perspective, this vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1531 which involves modifying existing programs or systems to gain access to systems or data.
Organizations must implement immediate mitigations to address this vulnerability, beginning with upgrading to AEM versions 6.5.22 or later where Adobe has addressed this specific XSS flaw. The mitigation strategy should also include implementing robust input validation and output encoding mechanisms, particularly for all user-supplied data within form fields. Web Application Firewalls should be configured to detect and block common XSS patterns in form submissions, while content security policies should be enforced to prevent execution of unauthorized scripts. Security teams should conduct comprehensive audits of all form fields within AEM implementations, ensuring that proper sanitization processes are in place. Additionally, regular security testing including automated scanning and manual penetration testing should be performed to identify similar vulnerabilities. The remediation process should also involve user education regarding the risks of submitting untrusted content and implementing proper access controls to limit who can submit data to vulnerable form fields. Organizations should maintain detailed logging of all form submissions to detect potential exploitation attempts, while also implementing proper incident response procedures to handle potential breaches. This vulnerability underscores the critical importance of maintaining up-to-date security patches and implementing defense-in-depth strategies to protect enterprise web applications from persistent threats.