August 2023: Security Hardening and Fixes

August 2023 focused on operational security and preparedness. Adobe released 2.4.6-p2, 2.4.5-p4 and 2.4.4-p5 (APSB23-42), addressing a critical OS Command Injection vulnerability (CVE-2023-38208) and other issues. Alongside the patches, Adobe shipped targeted fixes such as ACSD-51892 to resolve configuration files being loaded multiple times unnecessarily - a small but meaningful performance clean-up many teams noticed during deploys.

By late summer, most merchants aiming for stability had converged on 2.4.6 as the baseline, with 2.4.6-p2 providing a safe, incremental step. This is the ideal window to strengthen security hygiene. We helped clients reduce attack surface by tightening admin access, validating third-party modules, and ensuring CSP and WAF rules worked with the latest front-end dependencies.

Admin and access hardening remained a priority. IP allowlists, mandatory 2FA and periodic user reviews reduced the risk of credential misuse. Combined with proper role scoping, these measures limited lateral movement even if an account became compromised. On the client side, we encouraged CSP reporting mode as a minimum, graduating to stricter policies where feasible once false positives were addressed.

Supply chain vigilance also moved up the agenda. Keeping Composer and NPM dependencies current, pinning versions, and scanning for known CVEs has become daily hygiene. For cloud images and containers, routine scans are vital; for on-premise, build-time checks and SBOM generation create useful visibility.

Recommended actions for August:

• Adopt the latest p-line (2.4.6-p2 or equivalent) and validate checkout, admin and webhook flows.
• Audit third-party modules for security posture and vendor support; remove dead code and duplicated functionality.
• Harden admin access with IP allowlists, enforced 2FA and least-privilege roles; review user lists quarterly.
• Enable CSP reporting, inspect violations, then move critical areas to stricter policies.
• Track dependency updates and set a monthly cadence for patching Composer and NPM packages.

August is a good month to refine process so the October cycle lands smoothly. Teams that treat security as a steady practice enter Q4 with fewer surprises and more confidence.