CVE-2025-46914 in Experience Manager
Summary
by MITRE • 06/11/2025
Adobe Experience Manager versions 6.5.22 and earlier are affected by a stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability that could be abused by a low privileged 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 • 06/11/2025
Adobe Experience Manager 6.5.22 and earlier versions contain a critical stored cross-site scripting vulnerability that represents a significant security risk for organizations relying on this content management platform. This vulnerability exists within the form processing functionality where user input is not properly sanitized before being stored and subsequently rendered back to users. The flaw allows a low privileged attacker to inject malicious javascript code into form fields that are later displayed to other users, creating a persistent threat vector that can affect any user who accesses the compromised content. The vulnerability specifically impacts the rendering pipeline of form data where input validation mechanisms fail to adequately filter or escape potentially dangerous characters and script tags. The stored nature of this vulnerability means that once malicious code is injected, it remains active until manually removed from the system, making it particularly dangerous as it can affect multiple users over extended periods.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and output encoding within the AEM form handling components. When users submit data through forms within the AEM interface, the system should properly sanitize all input to prevent script execution in the browser context. However, the vulnerability occurs because the application fails to implement proper context-aware escaping mechanisms for different output contexts such as html attributes, javascript contexts, and css contexts. This allows attackers to inject malicious payloads that execute within the victim's browser session with the privileges of the logged-in user. The attack requires minimal privileges as the vulnerability can be exploited by users with basic form submission permissions, making it particularly concerning for organizations with broad user access controls. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-79 which specifically addresses cross-site scripting flaws, and represents a classic case of inadequate input sanitization and output encoding practices.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script execution as it can enable more sophisticated attacks including session hijacking, credential theft, and redirection to malicious sites. An attacker could inject scripts that steal cookies, capture keystrokes, or redirect users to phishing pages that appear legitimate within the AEM environment. The persistent nature of stored XSS means that the attack can continue to affect users long after the initial compromise, potentially allowing attackers to maintain access to sensitive information or system resources. Organizations using AEM may experience unauthorized data access, compromised user sessions, and potential regulatory violations if user data is accessed through this vulnerability. The attack vector is particularly concerning because it can be triggered simply by viewing a page containing the compromised form data, requiring no additional user interaction beyond normal browsing activities. This makes it difficult for users to defend against and can lead to widespread compromise within an organization's user base.
Organizations should immediately implement multiple layers of mitigation strategies to address this vulnerability. The primary recommendation is to upgrade to Adobe Experience Manager 6.5.23 or later versions where the vulnerability has been patched through enhanced input validation and output encoding mechanisms. Until an upgrade is possible, organizations should implement additional security controls including strict input validation at the application level, comprehensive output encoding for all form data, and regular security scanning of form fields for malicious content. Network-level protections such as web application firewalls should be configured to detect and block known XSS patterns in form submissions. Security teams should also implement monitoring and alerting for suspicious form data patterns and conduct regular penetration testing to identify potential exploitation vectors. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of context-aware security controls and proper input sanitization practices as outlined in the OWASP Top Ten and MITRE ATT&CK framework for web application security. Organizations should also consider implementing content security policies to limit the execution of inline scripts and restrict external resource loading to reduce the impact of successful XSS attacks.