GitHub Repo

Detection: Splunk XSS in Save table dialog header in search page

REMOVED DETECTION

This detection has been removed from the Splunk Threat Research content library and is no longer maintained or supported.

Reason: Detection is deprecated as the associated CVEs have been patched in the latest Splunk release.

Removed in version: 5.6.0

If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to us at research@splunk.com.

Updated Date: 2026-05-14 ID: a974d1ee-ddca-4837-b6ad-d55a8a239c20 Author: Rod Soto Type: Hunting Product: Splunk Enterprise Security

Description

The following analytic identifies persistent cross-site scripting (XSS) attempts in the 'Save Table' dialog on the Splunk search page. It detects POST requests to the endpoint /en-US/splunkd/__raw/servicesNS/nobody/search/datamodel/model containing potential XSS payloads. This activity is significant because it can allow a remote user with the "power" role to inject malicious scripts, leading to persistent XSS vulnerabilities. If confirmed malicious, this could enable attackers to execute arbitrary scripts in the context of the affected user, potentially leading to data theft, session hijacking, or further exploitation within the Splunk environment.

1`splunkd_webx` method=POST  uri=/*/splunkd/__raw/servicesNS/nobody/search/datamodel/model 
2| table _time host status clientip user uri 
3| `splunk_xss_in_save_table_dialog_header_in_search_page_filter`

Data Source

Name Platform Sourcetype Source
Splunk Splunk icon Splunk 'splunkd_ui_access' 'splunkd_ui_access.log'

Macros Used

Name Value
splunkd_webx index=_internal sourcetype=splunk_web_access
splunk_xss_in_save_table_dialog_header_in_search_page_filter ``
splunk_xss_in_save_table_dialog_header_in_search_page_filter is an empty macro by default. It allows the user to filter out any results (false positives) without editing the SPL.

Annotations

- MITRE ATT&CK
+ Kill Chain Phases
+ NIST
+ CIS
- Threat Actors
ID Technique Tactic
T1189 Drive-by Compromise Initial Access

CVE

Default Configuration

This detection is configured by default in Splunk Enterprise Security to run with the following settings:

Setting Value
Disabled true
Cron Schedule N/A
Earliest Time N/A
Latest Time N/A
Schedule Window N/A
Creates Finding (Notable) No
Creates Intermediate Finding (Risk Event) No
Hunting detections do not generate a Finding (Notable) or Intermediate Findings (Risk Events).

Implementation

Watch for POST requests combined with XSS script strings or obfuscation against the injection point /en-US/splunkd/__raw/servicesNS/nobody/search/datamodel/model.

Known False Positives

If host is vulnerable and XSS script strings are inputted they will show up in search. Not all Post requests are malicious as they will show when users create and save dashboards. This search may produce several results with non malicious POST requests. Only affects Splunk Web enabled instances.

Associated Analytic Story

References

Detection Testing

Test Type Status Dataset Source Sourcetype
Validation Not Applicable N/A N/A N/A
Unit Not Applicable N/A N/A N/A

Replay any dataset to Splunk Enterprise by using our replay.py tool or the UI. Alternatively you can replay a dataset into a Splunk Attack Range

Source: GitHub |

Version: 7