CVE-2025-43787 in Liferay
Summary
by MITRE • 09/12/2025
A Stored cross-site scripting vulnerability in the Liferay Portal 7.4.0 through 7.4.3.132, and Liferay DXP 2025.Q3.0, 2025.Q2.0 through 2025.Q2.12, 2025.Q1.0 through 2025.Q1.17, 2024.Q4.0 through 2024.Q4.7, 2024.Q3.0 through 2024.Q3.13, 2024.Q2.0 through 2024.Q2.13 and 2024.Q1.1 through 2024.Q1.20 allows an remote authenticated attacker to inject JavaScript through the organization site names. The malicious payload is stored and executed without proper sanitization or escaping.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/17/2025
This stored cross-site scripting vulnerability exists within the Liferay Portal and Liferay DXP platforms affecting multiple version ranges including 7.4.0 through 7.4.3.132 and various DXP quarterly releases from 2024.Q1.1 through 2025.Q3.0. The flaw specifically permits authenticated attackers to inject malicious JavaScript code through organization site names, which are then stored within the application's database and subsequently executed in the context of other users' browsers. This represents a critical security weakness that violates fundamental web application security principles and directly aligns with CWE-79 which defines cross-site scripting vulnerabilities as the failure to properly escape or sanitize user-controllable data before incorporating it into dynamically generated web content. The vulnerability operates at the application layer and demonstrates a severe lack of input validation and output encoding controls that should be implemented as part of the defense-in-depth strategy.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs when an authenticated attacker with sufficient privileges creates or modifies organization site names containing malicious script payloads. These payloads are stored in the database without proper sanitization or escaping mechanisms, making them persistent across user sessions and browser interactions. When other users view the affected organization site names, the malicious JavaScript code executes in their browsers, potentially leading to session hijacking, credential theft, or further exploitation of the victim's privileges. The stored nature of this vulnerability means that the malicious code remains active even after the initial injection, allowing attackers to maintain persistence and conduct long-term surveillance or attack campaigns against other users. This vulnerability directly maps to attack techniques described in the MITRE ATT&CK framework under the T1531 category for "Account Access Removal" and T1059.007 for "Command and Scripting Interpreter: JavaScript" which encompasses the execution of malicious scripts within browser contexts.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script execution to encompass significant risks for enterprise security and data integrity. Organizations utilizing affected Liferay versions face potential compromise of user sessions, unauthorized access to sensitive organizational data, and possible lateral movement within their network infrastructure. The vulnerability affects both portal and DXP environments, making it particularly dangerous for large enterprises that rely on Liferay for their digital experience platforms and content management systems. Attackers could leverage this vulnerability to establish persistent backdoors, harvest user credentials, or manipulate organizational information displayed in the portal interface. The widespread version support ranges indicate that this vulnerability affects organizations across multiple release cycles, increasing the potential attack surface and making remediation more complex. Organizations should immediately assess their deployment environments and prioritize patching efforts to mitigate this risk, as the vulnerability's persistence and remote execution capabilities present a substantial threat to enterprise security postures and compliance requirements.
Organizations should implement multiple layers of defense including immediate patching of affected versions, enhanced input validation for all user-controllable data fields, and comprehensive monitoring for suspicious activity related to organization site name modifications. The vulnerability highlights the critical importance of proper output encoding and input sanitization practices as recommended by OWASP and NIST cybersecurity guidelines. Additional mitigations should include privileged access controls, regular security audits of user-controllable content, and implementation of web application firewalls to detect and prevent malicious payload injection attempts. Security teams should also conduct thorough vulnerability assessments to identify similar weaknesses in other applications within their environment and establish robust incident response procedures to address potential exploitation attempts.