ConfluenceApplication · Atlassian
CVE-2017-18085
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedThe viewdefaultdecorator resource in Atlassian Confluence Server before version 6.6.1 allows remote attackers to inject arbitrary HTML or JavaScript via a cross site scripting (XSS) vulnerability through the key parameter.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidenceThis is a stored cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in Atlassian Confluence Server. The vulnerability exists in the viewdefaultdecorator resource where the 'key' parameter is not properly sanitized before being rendered in the response, allowing remote attackers to inject malicious HTML or JavaScript that executes in the context of other users' browsers.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data
ConfluenceApplication
< 6.6.1CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- Required
- Scope
- Changed
- Confidentiality
- Low
- Integrity
- Low
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify the installed Confluence versionLog into Confluence as an administrator and navigate to Confluence Admin > Configuration > About Confluence, or check the startup logs for the version numberAffected if The displayed version is below 6.6.1 (e.g., 6.5.x, 6.4.x, etc.)
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Locate the version from the file systemCheck the file <confluence-install>/confluence/WEB-INF/lib/confluence-*.jar for the version in the filename, or examine the build number in <confluence-install>/confluence/version.propertiesAffected if The version file or JAR name indicates a build prior to version 6.6.1
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Verify the vulnerable endpoint is accessibleConfirm the /viewdefaultdecorator.action endpoint is reachable. This can be tested by accessing a URL such as http(s)://<your-confluence-host>/viewdefaultdecorator.action in a browser. Note: This does not confirm exploitation, only accessibilityAffected if The endpoint responds successfully (HTTP 200) and the Confluence version is below 6.6.1
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Check for existing XSS payloads in decorator configurationsReview the database table PLUGINDATA or similar storage for any suspicious content in the 'key' parameter values. This requires database access and knowledge of Confluence's storage schemaAffected if Unexpected HTML or JavaScript code is found stored in decorator-related configuration records
You are affected if your Confluence Server version is below 6.6.1 and the viewdefaultdecorator endpoint is accessible to users who could inject malicious content via the key parameter.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor data6.6.1
Upgrade Confluence Server to version 6.6.1 or later to obtain the vendor patch. If immediate upgrading is not possible, implement web application firewall (WAF) rules to sanitize the key parameter and block malicious payloads.
Fix this in Confluence
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,752.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2017-18085 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2017-18085 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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