CVE-2025-43753: Liferay DXP Reflected XSS Vulnerability

CVE-2025-43753 Overview

CVE-2025-43753 is a reflected cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability affecting Liferay Portal and Liferay Digital Experience Platform (DXP). The flaw resides in the embedded message field of the form container component. An authenticated remote user can inject JavaScript that executes in the browser context of any user who renders the malicious content. The issue is classified under [CWE-79] Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation.

Affected releases include Liferay Portal 7.4.3.32 through 7.4.3.132, multiple Liferay DXP quarterly release trains from 2024.Q1.1 through 2025.Q1.7, and Liferay DXP 7.4 updates 32 through 92.

Critical Impact
Authenticated attackers can execute arbitrary JavaScript in victim browsers, enabling session data theft, unauthorized actions in the portal, and phishing pivots against portal users.

Affected Products

Liferay Portal 7.4.3.32 through 7.4.3.132
Liferay DXP 2025.Q1.0 through 2025.Q1.7, 2024.Q4.0 through 2024.Q4.7, 2024.Q3.1 through 2024.Q3.13, 2024.Q2.1 through 2024.Q2.13, 2024.Q1.1 through 2024.Q1.16
Liferay DXP 7.4 update 32 through update 92

Discovery Timeline

2025-08-21 - CVE CVE-2025-43753 published to NVD
2026-06-17 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-43753

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability is a reflected XSS in the form container component of Liferay Portal and DXP. The embedded message field does not properly neutralize user-supplied input before echoing it back into the rendered page. When the field reflects attacker-controlled content, the browser interprets injected <script> payloads or event handlers as executable code.

Exploitation requires an authenticated session with permission to configure or submit values to the embedded message field. Once JavaScript executes, it runs with the origin and session context of the victim, granting access to cookies not marked HttpOnly, DOM data, and any portal APIs the victim can reach.

The practical impact is bounded by the authenticated prerequisite, but portals with many low-privilege users or open self-registration expand the attack surface. Consequences include session riding against administrative endpoints, credential harvesting via injected forms, and pivoting to internal Liferay services.

Root Cause

The root cause is missing output encoding of the embedded message field within the form container. Input intended for display is written into the response HTML without HTML-entity encoding, allowing markup and script contexts to break out of intended data boundaries.

Attack Vector

The attack requires network access to the Liferay portal and valid authenticated credentials. An attacker crafts a payload in the embedded message field of a form container, then delivers a link or triggers rendering so that a targeted user loads the reflected content. Technical details are described in prose only; refer to the Liferay Security Advisory CVE-2025-43753 for vendor-published specifics.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-43753

Indicators of Compromise

HTTP request or response bodies containing <script>, onerror=, onload=, or javascript: payloads within form container message parameters.
Portal audit log entries showing form container edits by unexpected accounts or from unusual source addresses.
Browser telemetry reporting Content Security Policy (CSP) violations originating from Liferay-served pages.

Detection Strategies

Inspect web application firewall (WAF) and reverse proxy logs for reflected input patterns targeting Liferay form container endpoints.
Correlate authenticated portal sessions with outbound requests to unfamiliar domains that could act as XSS beacons.
Review Liferay access logs for repeated parameter tampering against form container URLs by the same session.

Monitoring Recommendations

Enable and forward Liferay audit and access logs to a centralized analytics platform for retention and query.
Alert on HTML or JavaScript metacharacters appearing in fields that should contain plain text.
Monitor for anomalous privilege changes or session token reuse patterns following form submissions.

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-43753

Immediate Actions Required

Upgrade Liferay Portal and DXP to the fixed releases identified in the Liferay Security Advisory CVE-2025-43753.
Restrict permissions to create or edit form containers to trusted administrative roles.
Audit existing form container configurations for previously injected payloads and remove suspect content.

Patch Information

Liferay has published guidance for this vulnerability in the vendor advisory. Administrators should apply the vendor-recommended service pack, hotfix, or quarterly release update covering the affected Portal 7.4.3.x, DXP quarterly, and DXP 7.4 update ranges. Consult the Liferay Security Advisory CVE-2025-43753 for the exact fixed versions.

Workarounds

Deploy a strict Content Security Policy that disallows inline scripts and restricts script sources for portal pages.
Configure WAF rules to block or sanitize HTML markup submitted to form container fields.
Reduce the population of users who can author form containers until patching is complete.

bash

# Example CSP header to reduce XSS blast radius on Liferay responses
add_header Content-Security-Policy "default-src 'self'; script-src 'self'; object-src 'none'; base-uri 'self'; frame-ancestors 'self'";