CVE-2025-53426 identifies a reflected Cross-site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability in the Bob Likert Survey Master product, affecting versions up to and including 0.8.0.1. The vulnerability stems from improper neutralization of user-supplied input during the generation of web pages, which allows attackers to inject malicious JavaScript code that is reflected back to users. This reflected XSS requires no authentication and can be triggered by enticing a user to click on a crafted URL or link containing malicious payloads. Upon execution in the victim’s browser, the attacker can steal session cookies, perform actions on behalf of the user, or exfiltrate sensitive information, thereby compromising confidentiality. The CVSS v3.1 base score is 7.1, reflecting network attack vector (AV:N), low attack complexity (AC:L), no privileges required (PR:N), but requiring user interaction (UI:R). The scope remains unchanged (S:U), with high impact on confidentiality (C:H), low on integrity (I:L), and no impact on availability (A:N). No public exploits have been reported yet, but the vulnerability is publicly disclosed and should be considered a significant risk. The vulnerability affects organizations that deploy Likert Survey Master, a tool commonly used for survey data collection, often in academic, market research, and public sector environments. The lack of patches at the time of disclosure increases the urgency for interim mitigations. The vulnerability’s exploitation could lead to unauthorized data disclosure and session hijacking, undermining user trust and data privacy.

For European organizations, the primary impact of CVE-2025-53426 is the potential compromise of confidentiality through session hijacking and data theft. Organizations using Likert Survey Master for collecting sensitive survey data, including personal, health, or opinion data, face risks of data leakage and privacy violations under GDPR. Attackers exploiting this vulnerability could impersonate users, access restricted survey results, or manipulate survey participation. This could lead to reputational damage, regulatory penalties, and loss of stakeholder trust. Public sector entities and research institutions that rely on survey tools for citizen engagement or academic studies are particularly vulnerable. Although the vulnerability does not affect system availability or integrity significantly, the confidentiality breach alone can have serious consequences, especially where sensitive or regulated data is involved. The requirement for user interaction means phishing or social engineering campaigns could be used to trigger exploitation, increasing the attack surface.

1. Apply official patches or updates from Bob as soon as they become available to remediate the vulnerability at the source. 2. Until patches are released, implement strict input validation and output encoding on all user-supplied data within the application to prevent script injection. 3. Deploy Content Security Policy (CSP) headers to restrict the execution of unauthorized scripts and reduce the impact of XSS attacks. 4. Educate users to be cautious about clicking on unsolicited or suspicious links, especially those related to survey invitations. 5. Use web application firewalls (WAFs) with rules designed to detect and block reflected XSS payloads targeting Likert Survey Master endpoints. 6. Regularly audit and monitor web server logs for unusual or suspicious request patterns indicative of attempted XSS exploitation. 7. Consider isolating the survey application environment and limiting access to trusted users to reduce exposure. 8. Review and enhance incident response plans to quickly address potential XSS incidents and data breaches.