Vulnerabilities

A sandbox escape vulnerability exists in dotCMS’s Velocity scripting engine (VTools) that allows authenticated users with scripting privileges to bypass class and package restrictions enforced by SecureUberspectorImpl. By dynamically modifying the Velocity engine’s runtime configuration and reinitializing its Uberspect, a malicious actor can remove the introspector.restrict.classes and introspector.restrict.packages protections. Once these restrictions are cleared, the attacker can access arbitrary Java classes, including java.lang.Runtime, and execute arbitrary system commands under the privileges of the application process (e.g. dotCMS or Tomcat user).

The "reset password" login page accepted an HTML injection via URL parameters. This has already been rectified via patch, and as such it cannot be demonstrated via Demo site link. Those interested to see the vulnerability may spin up a http://localhost:8082/dotAdmin/#/public/login?resetEmailSent=true&resetEmail=%3Ch1%3E%3Ca%20href%3D%22https:%2F%2Fgoogle.com%22%3ECLICK%20ME%3C%2Fa%3E%3C%2Fh1%3E This will result in a view along these lines: * OWASP Top 10 - A03: Injection * CVSS Score: 5.4 * AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:N https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln-metrics/cvss/v3-calculator * https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln-metrics/cvss/v3-calculator?vector=AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:N&... https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln-metrics/cvss/v3-calculator

System->Maintenance-> Log Files in dotCMS dashboard is providing the username/password for database connections in the log output. Nevertheless, this is a moderate issue as it requires a backend admin as well as that dbs are locked down by environment. OWASP Top 10 - A05) Insecure Design OWASP Top 10 - A05) Security Misconfiguration OWASP Top 10 - A09) Security Logging and Monitoring Failure

In dotCMS, versions mentioned, a flaw in the NormalizationFilter does not strip double slashes (//) from URLs, potentially enabling bypasses for XSS and access controls. An example affected URL is https://demo.dotcms.com//html/portlet/ext/files/edit_text_inc.jsp , which should return a 404 response but didn't. The oversight in the default invalid URL character list can be viewed at the provided GitHub link https://github.com/dotCMS/core/blob/master/dotCMS/src/main/java/com/dotcms/filters/NormalizationFilter.java#L37 . To mitigate, users can block URLs with double slashes at firewalls or utilize dotCMS config variables. Specifically, they can use the DOT_URI_NORMALIZATION_FORBIDDEN_STRINGS environmental variable to add // to the list of invalid strings. Additionally, the DOT_URI_NORMALIZATION_FORBIDDEN_REGEX variable offers more detailed control, for instance, to block //html.* URLs. Fix Version:23.06+, LTS 22.03.7+, LTS 23.01.4+

An issue was discovered in dotCMS core 5.3.8.5 through 5.3.8.15 and 21.03 through 22.10.1. A cryptographically insecure random generation algorithm for password-reset token generation leads to account takeover.

dotCMS before 22.06 allows remote attackers to bypass intended access control and obtain sensitive information by using a semicolon in a URL to introduce a matrix parameter. (This is also fixed in 5.3.8.12, 21.06.9, and 22.03.2 for LTS users.) Some Java application frameworks, including those used by Spring or Tomcat, allow the use of matrix parameters: these are URI parameters separated by semicolons. Through precise semicolon placement in a URI, it is possible to exploit this feature to avoid dotCMS's path-based XSS prevention (such as "require login" filters), and consequently access restricted resources. For example, an attacker could place a semicolon immediately before a / character that separates elements of a filesystem path. This could reveal file content that is ordinarily only visible to signed-in users. This issue can be chained with other exploit code to achieve XSS attacks against dotCMS.

A Reflected Cross-site scripting (XSS) issue was discovered in dotCMS Core through 22.06. This occurs in the admin portal when the configuration has XSS_PROTECTION_ENABLED=false. NOTE: the vendor disputes this because the current product behavior, in effect, has XSS_PROTECTION_ENABLED=true in all configurations

The ContentResource API in dotCMS 3.0 through 22.02 accepts multipart form uploads without sanitizing the submitted filename, allowing directory traversal so the uploaded file is written outside the intended storage location. An attacker triggers this by sending a crafted multipart POST request with traversal sequences embedded in the filename. When anonymous content creation is enabled, the flaw permits a fully unauthenticated attacker to upload an executable file such as a .jsp webshell and achieve remote code execution on the server. All dotCMS deployments running affected versions are exposed, with the highest risk on instances that allow anonymous content creation and expose the ContentResource API to the internet. Exploitation is confirmed in the wild: the flaw was added to CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 2022-08-25 with known ransomware use, it carries a 91.6% EPSS probability of exploitation, and a public proof of concept is available.

Do: Upgrade every dotCMS deployment in the 3.0–22.02 range to a fixed release per vendor instructions (any version beyond the affected range, e.g., 22.03 or later, or the vendor's patched LTS branch). If patching must wait, disable anonymous content creation, restrict the upload path so files cannot be written into web-executable directories, and audit the web root for unexpected .jsp files. Review access logs for multipart POSTs to the ContentResource API containing traversal sequences in filenames, and confirm remediation via CISA's required-action guidance.

Unrestricted Upload of File with Dangerous Type in DotCMS v5.2.3 and earlier allow remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via the component "/src/main/java/com/dotmarketing/filters/CMSFilter.java".

Incorrect Access Control in DotCMS versions before 5.1 allows remote attackers to gain privileges by injecting client configurations via vtl (velocity) files.

A reflected cross site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in dotAdmin/#/c/links of dotCMS 21.05.1 allows attackers to execute arbitrary commands or HTML via a crafted payload.

Cross Site Scripting (XSS) in dotCMS v5.1.5 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code by injecting a malicious payload into the "Task Detail" comment window of the "/dotAdmin/#/c/workflow" component.

dotCMS before 20.10.1 allows SQL injection, as demonstrated by the /api/v1/containers orderby parameter. The PaginatorOrdered classes that are used to paginate results of a REST endpoints do not sanitize the orderBy parameter and in some cases it is vulnerable to SQL injection attacks. A user must be an authenticated manager in the dotCMS system to exploit this vulnerability.

DotCMS Add Template with admin panel 20.11 is affected by cross-site Scripting (XSS) to gain remote privileges. An attacker could compromise the security of a website or web application through a stored XSS attack and stealing cookies using XSS.

dotCMS before 5.2.4 is vulnerable to directory traversal, leading to incorrect access control. It allows an attacker to read or execute files under $TOMCAT_HOME/webapps/ROOT/assets (which should be a protected directory). Additionally, attackers can upload temporary files (e.g., .jsp files) into /webapps/ROOT/assets/tmp_upload, which can lead to remote command execution (with the permissions of the user running the dotCMS application).

dotCMS before 5.1.6 is vulnerable to a SQL injection that can be exploited by an attacker of the role Publisher via view_unpushed_bundles.jsp.

dotCMS before 5.1.0 has a path traversal vulnerability exploitable by an administrator to create files. The vulnerability is caused by the insecure extraction of a ZIP archive.

/servlets/ajax_file_upload?fieldName=binary3 in dotCMS 5.1.1 allows XSS and HTML Injection.

dotCMS before 5.0.2 has open redirects via the html/common/forward_js.jsp FORWARD_URL parameter or the html/portlet/ext/common/page_preview_popup.jsp hostname parameter.

An issue was discovered in Dotcms through 5.0.3. Attackers may perform XSS attacks via the inode, identifier, or fieldName parameter in html/js/dotcms/dijit/image/image_tool.jsp.

dotCMS V5.0.1 has XSS in the /html/portlet/ext/contentlet/image_tools/index.jsp fieldName and inode parameters.

The dotCMS administration panel, versions 3.7.1 and earlier, are vulnerable to cross-site request forgery. The dotCMS administrator panel contains a cross-site request forgery (CSRF) vulnerability. An attacker can perform actions with the same permissions as a victim user, provided the victim has an active session and is induced to trigger the malicious request. An unauthenticated remote attacker may perform actions with the dotCMS administrator panel with the same permissions of a victim user or execute arbitrary system commands with the permissions of the user running the dotCMS application.

SQL injection vulnerability in the "Content Types > Content Types" screen in dotCMS before 3.7.2 and 4.x before 4.1.1 allows remote authenticated administrators to execute arbitrary SQL commands via the _EXT_STRUCTURE_direction parameter.

The dotCMS 4.1.1 application is vulnerable to Stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) affecting a vanity-urls Title field, a containers Description field, and a templates Description field.

Arbitrary file upload vulnerability in com/dotmarketing/servlets/AjaxFileUploadServlet.class in dotCMS 4.1.1 allows remote authenticated administrators to upload .jsp files to arbitrary locations via directory traversal sequences in the fieldName parameter to servlets/ajax_file_upload. This results in arbitrary code execution by requesting the .jsp file at a /assets URI.

dotCMS 3.7.0 has XSS reachable from ext/languages_manager/edit_language in portal/layout via the bottom two form fields.

An issue was discovered in dotCMS through 3.6.1. The findChildrenByFilter() function which is called by the web accessible path /categoriesServlet performs string interpolation and direct SQL query execution. SQL quote escaping and a keyword blacklist were implemented in a new class, SQLUtil (main/java/com/dotmarketing/common/util/SQLUtil.java), as part of the remediation of CVE-2016-8902; however, these can be overcome in the case of the q and inode parameters to the /categoriesServlet path. Overcoming these controls permits a number of blind boolean SQL injection vectors in either parameter. The /categoriesServlet web path can be accessed remotely and without authentication in a default dotCMS deployment.

XSS was discovered in dotCMS 3.7.0, with an unauthenticated attack against the /about-us/locations/index direction parameter.

SQL injection vulnerability in the REST API in dotCMS before 3.3.2 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary SQL commands via the stName parameter to api/content/save/1.

SQL injection vulnerability in the categoriesServlet servlet in dotCMS before 3.3.1 allows remote not authenticated attackers to execute arbitrary SQL commands via the sort parameter.

In dotCMS 3.2.1, attacker can load captcha once, fill it with correct value and then this correct value is ok for forms with captcha check later.

CRLF injection vulnerability in the send email functionality in dotCMS before 3.3.2 allows remote attackers to inject arbitrary email headers via CRLF sequences in the subject.

SQL injection vulnerability in the Workflow Screen in dotCMS before 3.3.2 allows remote administrators to execute arbitrary SQL commands via the orderby parameter.