CVE-2024-52862 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 • 02/18/2025
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, personalization, and digital asset management, making it a critical component in modern web infrastructures. Organizations rely heavily on AEM for publishing dynamic content and managing user interactions through various form-based interfaces. The vulnerability in question affects versions 6.5.21 and earlier, indicating this is a long-standing issue within the platform's codebase that has persisted through multiple releases.
The stored cross-site scripting vulnerability exists within the form field processing mechanisms of Adobe Experience Manager. This flaw allows attackers to inject malicious JavaScript code into form fields that are subsequently stored within the system's database. When legitimate users access pages containing these compromised fields, the malicious scripts execute within their browser context. The vulnerability specifically targets the sanitization and rendering processes of form inputs, bypassing standard security measures designed to prevent script injection. This type of vulnerability falls under the CWE-79 category for Cross-Site Scripting, representing a fundamental weakness in input validation and output encoding.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script execution, as it provides attackers with potential access to user sessions and sensitive information. An attacker could exploit this weakness to steal cookies, session tokens, or other authentication credentials from victims browsing affected pages. The stored nature of the vulnerability means that the malicious payload persists even after the initial injection, allowing for prolonged exploitation periods. This characteristic significantly increases the attack surface and makes the vulnerability particularly dangerous in environments where multiple users interact with the same content management system. The vulnerability enables potential lateral movement within networks and could facilitate more severe attacks such as privilege escalation or data exfiltration.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigation strategies including updating to patched versions of Adobe Experience Manager, as this vulnerability has been addressed in newer releases. The recommended approach involves comprehensive patch management procedures to ensure all affected systems receive the necessary security updates. Input validation and output encoding mechanisms should be strengthened through enhanced sanitization processes, particularly for form field data. Security teams must conduct thorough vulnerability assessments to identify all instances of the vulnerable software within their infrastructure. Additionally, implementing web application firewalls and content security policies can provide additional layers of protection against exploitation attempts. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of maintaining up-to-date security controls and implementing proper input validation as outlined in the ATT&CK framework's techniques for command and control communications.