CVE-2026-90531 in Experience Manager
Summary
by MITRE • 10/14/2026
Adobe Experience Manager is affected by an Improper Restriction of XML External Entity Reference ('XXE') vulnerability that could result in privilege escalation. A low-privileged attacker could exploit this vulnerability to gain elevated access to internal resources. Exploitation of this issue does not require user interaction. Scope is changed.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/14/2026
Adobe Experience Manager contains a critical security flaw classified as an Improper Restriction of XML External Entity Reference, commonly known as XXE injection. This vulnerability stems from the application's failure to properly validate or sanitize XML input before processing it within its internal parsers. By default, many XML processors allow the definition and resolution of external entities, which can be manipulated by a malicious actor to reference local files on the server hosting the application or to initiate outbound network connections to remote servers controlled by the attacker. In this specific instance, the flaw resides in a component that processes user-supplied XML data without adequate restrictions on entity expansion or external resource access, creating an avenue for unauthorized information disclosure and system manipulation.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe due to its potential for privilege escalation. A low-privileged attacker who has valid credentials within the Adobe Experience Manager environment can exploit this flaw to bypass standard security controls. By crafting a malicious XML payload that triggers external entity resolution, the attacker can read sensitive files from the server's file system, such as configuration files containing database passwords or internal API keys. Furthermore, in certain configurations where out-of-band data exfiltration is possible through DNS or HTTP requests, the attacker may achieve remote code execution by leveraging other vulnerabilities present on the backend infrastructure that are triggered via these external connections. The scope of the vulnerability changes from a simple information leak to a broader compromise because it allows an actor with limited initial access to elevate their privileges and interact with internal resources that were previously inaccessible.
This type of attack aligns directly with Common Weakness Enumeration identifier CWE-611, which describes Improper Restriction of XML External Entity Reference. From the perspective of the MITRE ATT&CK framework, this vulnerability facilitates techniques associated with Initial Access via Valid Accounts and subsequent Data Exfiltration over Alternative Protocol or Command and Control if used for beaconing back to an attacker-controlled server. The lack of user interaction required for exploitation means that once authentication is achieved through any method, including credential stuffing or stolen tokens, the attack can proceed automatically without further social engineering or physical access.
To mitigate this risk, organizations must ensure they are running a patched version of Adobe Experience Manager as released by the vendor to address these specific parser vulnerabilities. Beyond patching, it is essential to implement defense-in-depth strategies such as disabling XML external entity processing entirely if not strictly required for business functions. Input validation should be enforced at multiple layers, ensuring that any XML data received from users or third-party systems is validated against a strict schema before being passed to the parser. Additionally, network segmentation and firewall rules can help limit the impact of out-of-band attacks by restricting outbound connections from the application server to only known and necessary endpoints. Regular security audits and penetration testing focused on injection flaws are recommended to identify similar weaknesses in custom integrations or extensions within the Adobe Experience Manager ecosystem.