CVE-2026-81160 in Slick Carousel
Summary
by MITRE • 09/02/2026
Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ("Cross-site Scripting") vulnerability in Drupal Slick Carousel allows Stored XSS. This issue affects Slick Carousel versions: from 0.0.0 to 2.1.0.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/02/2026
The identified security flaw represents a classic instance of Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation, commonly known as Cross-Site Scripting or XSS. Specifically, this vulnerability manifests within the Drupal Slick Carousel module, which is widely used to create responsive image and content carousels on websites built with the Drupal CMS. The root cause lies in the application's failure to properly sanitize user-supplied input before it is rendered into HTML output. When an attacker injects malicious script code through fields that are processed by the Slick Carousel module, such as title attributes or custom data properties associated with carousel items, the system fails to escape these characters effectively. Consequently, when a victim visits a page containing this content, the browser interprets the injected scripts as legitimate executable code rather than static text, leading to the execution of arbitrary JavaScript in the context of the vulnerable website.
This specific vulnerability is classified as Stored XSS because the malicious payload is saved on the target server, typically within the database or file system associated with a Drupal node or media entity. Unlike reflected XSS where the attack vector is contained within a single HTTP request and response cycle, stored vulnerabilities persist until the content is manually removed by an administrator. This persistence significantly amplifies the severity of the issue because every user who views the affected carousel becomes a potential victim without needing to click on a specially crafted link. The attacker can achieve persistent access to sensitive information such as session cookies, authentication tokens, or personally identifiable information stored in local storage. Furthermore, this capability allows for more sophisticated attacks including keylogging, form hijacking where legitimate forms are submitted to malicious servers, and defacement of the website interface by manipulating DOM elements via JavaScript injection.
From a technical perspective, the flaw stems from insufficient validation and encoding mechanisms within versions 0.0.0 through 2.1.0 of the Slick Carousel module for Drupal. The module likely accepts input parameters that are directly interpolated into HTML attributes or script blocks without applying appropriate context-specific escaping rules. For instance, if a user provides a title string containing double quotes followed by an event handler like onerror or onload, and this string is placed inside an HTML tag attribute without proper encoding of the quote characters, it can break out of the attribute scope and inject executable code. This aligns with CWE-79, which defines Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation as a category where web applications do not neutralize special elements that could be interpreted by browsers in an unintended manner. The lack of robust input sanitization allows attackers to bypass basic security controls that rely on simple string matching rather than context-aware encoding.
The operational impact extends beyond immediate data theft, affecting the integrity and availability of the affected Drupal site. Attackers can use this vulnerability to perform session hijacking by stealing administrator cookies, thereby gaining full control over the website backend. This could lead to further compromise such as installing web shells, modifying core files, or using the server for distributed denial-of-service attacks against third parties. Additionally, browsers may block scripts from untrusted origins due to Content Security Policy (CSP) restrictions if properly configured, but many sites do not implement strict CSPs by default, leaving them vulnerable. The presence of this vulnerability also damages user trust and can lead to compliance violations under regulations like GDPR or HIPAA if personal data is exfiltrated through the XSS vector.
To mitigate this risk, site administrators must immediately upgrade the Drupal Slick Carousel module to a version newer than 2.1.0 where these input handling issues have been addressed by developers. It is critical to verify that the update includes patches for proper HTML entity encoding and output escaping in all user-facing fields processed by the carousel component. In addition to upgrading, implementing defense-in-depth strategies is highly recommended. This includes configuring a strict Content Security Policy header on the web server to restrict script execution sources, which can prevent many XSS payloads from executing even if they are injected into the DOM. Furthermore, enabling Drupal’s built-in filter_xss_admin and filter_html_safe filters for relevant input formats ensures that special characters are neutralized before storage or display. Regular security audits and penetration testing should be conducted to identify similar injection points in other modules, ensuring a comprehensive approach to web application security aligned with OWASP Top 10 guidelines regarding XSS prevention.