CVE-2025-43734
📋 TL;DR
A reflected cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in Liferay Portal and DXP allows authenticated attackers to inject malicious JavaScript via the custom sort widget configuration. When users refresh pages containing the compromised widget, the script executes in their browser context. This affects authenticated users of vulnerable Liferay versions.
💻 Affected Systems
- Liferay Portal
- Liferay DXP
📦 What is this software?
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Authenticated attacker steals session cookies, performs actions as other users, or redirects to malicious sites, potentially leading to account compromise and data theft.
Likely Case
Attackers perform session hijacking, deface content, or steal sensitive information from authenticated users.
If Mitigated
With proper input validation and output encoding, the script payload would be neutralized, preventing execution.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires authenticated access and knowledge of widget configuration.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Apply Liferay Portal 7.4.3.133+ or Liferay DXP updates beyond affected versions
Vendor Advisory: https://liferay.dev/portal/security/known-vulnerabilities/-/asset_publisher/jekt/content/CVE-2025-43734
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
1. Review the vendor advisory. 2. Apply the appropriate patch or update to your Liferay version. 3. Verify the fix by testing the vulnerable field.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable custom sort widget
allRemove or disable custom sort widgets to prevent exploitation.
Navigate to Liferay Control Panel > Widgets > Custom Sort, disable or remove vulnerable widgets
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Restrict access to widget configuration to trusted administrators only.
- Implement web application firewall (WAF) rules to block XSS payloads in the 'first display label' field.
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Test by entering a simple XSS payload like <script>alert('test')</script> in the 'first display label' field of a custom sort widget and refreshing the page.Check Version:
Check Liferay version via Control Panel > Server Administration > Properties or review liferay-portal.xml.Verify Fix Applied:
After patching, repeat the test with the same payload; the script should not execute and should be properly encoded in output.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual POST requests to widget configuration endpoints with script tags or JavaScript in parameters
- Multiple failed login attempts followed by widget configuration changes
Network Indicators:
- HTTP requests containing script tags in 'first display label' parameter
- Unexpected redirects or external resource loads from Liferay pages
SIEM Query:
source="liferay.log" AND ("first display label" AND ("<script>" OR "javascript:"))