In this episode, we take a closer look at how XBOW delivers context-aware vulnerability reports that help development teams understand and fix issues faster. In most traditional DAST products, vulnerability reporting is largely templated or static. For example, an XSS finding comes with the same summary and mitigation text regardless of where or how it appears.
As a result, developers are often left starting from ground zero, trying to piece together what actually caused the vulnerability and what changes are needed to remediate it for a specific endpoint. By contrast, XBOW uses AI to generate vulnerability reports that reflect the real exploit path, application behavior, and code context, turning raw findings into clear, actionable guidance.
Scene Breakdown: Same Vulnerability, Two Stories
Let’s take a closer look by comparing how the same vulnerability is reported by XBOW and by a popular open-source DAST scanner. In this example, both tools identify the same XSS vulnerability in the OWASP Juice Shop test application.
DAST Scanner Summary:
Cross-site Scripting (XSS) is an attack technique that involves echoing attacker-supplied code into a user's browser instance. A browser instance can be a standard web browser client, or a browser object embedded in a software product such as the browser within WinAmp, an RSS reader, or an email client. The code itself is usually written in HTML/JavaScript, but may also extend to VBScript, ActiveX, Java, Flash, or any other browser-supported technology.
When an attacker gets a user's browser to execute his/her code, the code will run within the security context (or zone) of the hosting web site. With this level of privilege, the code has the ability to read, modify and transmit any sensitive data accessible by the browser. A Cross-site Scripted user could have his/her account hijacked (cookie theft), their browser redirected to another location, or possibly shown fraudulent content delivered by the web site they are visiting. Cross-site Scripting attacks essentially compromise the trust relationship between a user and the web site. Applications utilizing browser object instances which load content from the file system may execute code under the local machine zone allowing for system compromise.There are three types of Cross-site Scripting attacks: non-persistent, persistent and DOM-based.
Non-persistent attacks and DOM-based attacks require a user to either visit a specially crafted link laced with malicious code, or visit a malicious web page containing a web form, which when posted to the vulnerable site, will mount the attack. Using a malicious form will oftentimes take place when the vulnerable resource only accepts HTTP POST requests. In such a case, the form can be submitted automatically, without the victim's knowledge (e.g. by using JavaScript). Upon clicking on the malicious link or submitting the malicious form, the XSS payload will get echoed back and will get interpreted by the user's browser and execute. Another technique to send almost arbitrary requests (GET and POST) is by using an embedded client, such as Adobe Flash.Persistent attacks occur when the malicious code is submitted to a web site where it's stored for a period of time. Examples of an attacker's favorite targets often include message board posts, web mail messages, and web chat software. The unsuspecting user is not required to interact with any additional site/link (e.g. an attacker site or a malicious link sent via email), just simply view the web page containing the code.
Every reflected XSS finding looks exactly like this which is a common pattern with traditional DAST scanners. The report provides no context about how the vulnerability was actually exploited, relying instead on broad, generic descriptions.
XBOW:
The catalog search page reflects the searchTerm parameter into an inline JavaScript string without proper context-aware escaping. By supplying a backslash-quote sequence, an attacker can break out of the single-quoted string assigned to a JavaScript variable and inject arbitrary script, which is executed when the page loads.
Reflected Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) occurs when untrusted user input is included in a page’s response and interpreted as executable code in the victim’s browser. In JavaScript string contexts, output encoding must escape not only quotes but also backslashes and other control characters. Failing to do so allows crafted input to terminate the string and introduce attacker-controlled JavaScript.
In this instance, visiting a crafted URL to https://ginandjuice.shop/catalog with searchTerm=';alert(1)// (URL-encoded) triggers execution of alert(1) in the victim’s browser. This enables arbitrary JavaScript execution, which can be used to perform actions as the user, exfiltrate data in the page, or pivot to broader attacks such as CSRF.
Exploit
The endpoint /catalog embeds the value of the GET parameter searchTerm into an inline script that sets a variable, for example: var searchText = '<user-input>'; document.getElementById('searchBar').value = searchText;
The server-side escaping covers single quotes but does not escape backslashes. An attacker can supply a payload beginning with a backslash followed by a single quote to neutralize the escaping and close the string, then append arbitrary JavaScript and comment out the remainder. For example, the payload ';alert(1)// (URL-encoded as %5C%27%3Balert(1)%2F%2F) results in immediate script execution when the page is rendered.
Here, the vulnerability isn’t just identified, it’s explained in context, giving developers a clear path to remediation.
Roll Credits: The Power of Context
This example shows exactly why context-aware vulnerability descriptions matter. When developers can see how a vulnerability was exploited, where it lives in the application, and what needs to change to fix it, they can get on the right track immediately.
Instead of deciphering generic, one-size-fits-all findings, teams receive clear, actionable insight tailored to their application and their code. The result is a dramatically reduced time to fix and fewer vulnerabilities left lurking in the shadows. In Tales from the Trace, the real twist ending isn’t the vulnerability itself, it’s how quickly it gets resolved.
If you want to see how this level of exploit context and proof-driven reporting applies to your own applications, I can walk through how validated traces, payloads, and execution evidence are generated in practice for your environments. Reach out to me and our team of security experts at xbow.com/contact.
Stay tuned for the next episode of Tales from the Trace!
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