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threat-modeling.md

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Threat Model Analysis for valkey-io/valkey

Threat: Unencrypted Data in Transit

  • Description: An attacker eavesdrops on network traffic between the application and Valkey server. They intercept unencrypted data transmitted over the network, potentially using network sniffing tools. This is possible if TLS encryption is not enabled for Valkey connections.
  • Impact: Confidential information exchanged between the application and Valkey, such as sensitive data, session tokens, or API keys, is exposed to the attacker. This can lead to unauthorized access, data breaches, and further attacks.
  • Valkey Component Affected: Network Communication, Valkey Protocol
  • Risk Severity: High
  • Mitigation Strategies:
    • Enable TLS encryption for Valkey connections using tls-port and related TLS configuration options in Valkey.
    • Configure the application to connect to Valkey using TLS (e.g., using rediss:// connection URI).
    • Isolate Valkey traffic within a trusted network segment using firewalls to limit potential eavesdropping points.

Threat: Unauthorized Data Access via Valkey Protocol

  • Description: An attacker gains network access to the Valkey port (e.g., through firewall misconfiguration or network compromise). They directly connect to Valkey using a Valkey client and bypass application-level access controls to issue commands and access data.
  • Impact: Full read access to all data stored in Valkey. The attacker can retrieve sensitive user information, application state, business-critical data, and potentially application secrets stored in Valkey.
  • Valkey Component Affected: Network Access, Valkey Protocol, Command Processing
  • Risk Severity: Critical
  • Mitigation Strategies:
    • Implement strict network firewall rules to allow connections to the Valkey port only from authorized application servers.
    • Enable password-based authentication using Valkey's requirepass configuration option to prevent unauthorized connections.
    • Utilize Valkey's ACL (Access Control List) feature for more granular access control, defining specific permissions for different users or applications.

Threat: Unauthorized Data Modification via Valkey Protocol

  • Description: An attacker gains network access to Valkey and bypasses application logic to directly modify or delete data using Valkey commands. This could be done after gaining unauthorized access as described in "Unauthorized Data Access via Valkey Protocol".
  • Impact: Data corruption, application malfunction due to incorrect data, business logic bypass, and potential denial of service if critical data is deleted or modified.
  • Valkey Component Affected: Network Access, Valkey Protocol, Command Processing, Data Storage
  • Risk Severity: Critical
  • Mitigation Strategies:
    • Implement strong network firewall rules and authentication as described in "Unauthorized Data Access via Valkey Protocol".
    • Utilize Valkey's ACL feature to restrict write access (commands like SET, DEL, HSET, etc.) to only authorized users or applications.
    • Implement application-level data validation and integrity checks to detect and mitigate unauthorized modifications.
    • Consider using Valkey's persistence mechanisms (RDB or AOF) to enable data recovery in case of accidental or malicious data deletion.

Threat: Denial of Service (DoS) via Valkey Command Abuse

  • Description: An attacker sends resource-intensive Valkey commands (e.g., KEYS *, large MGET/MSET, slow Lua scripts) to overload the Valkey instance. This can be done from within a compromised application or directly if the attacker has network access to Valkey.
  • Impact: Valkey instance performance degradation, application slowdown, service unavailability, and potential cascading failures if the application heavily relies on Valkey.
  • Valkey Component Affected: Command Processing, Resource Management
  • Risk Severity: High
  • Mitigation Strategies:
    • Disable or restrict access to potentially dangerous Valkey commands (e.g., KEYS, FLUSHALL, EVAL) using ACLs.
    • Implement rate limiting and connection limits on Valkey connections at the network or application level.
    • Monitor Valkey performance metrics (CPU, memory, network) and set up alerts for unusual activity.
    • Properly configure Valkey resource limits (e.g., maxmemory) to prevent resource exhaustion.
    • Review and optimize application code to avoid inefficient Valkey command usage.

Threat: Valkey Instance Failure

  • Description: The Valkey instance fails due to hardware issues, software bugs, operational errors, or external factors. If the application is not designed for high availability, this can lead to application downtime.
  • Impact: Application unavailability, data loss (if persistence is not configured or fails), and business disruption.
  • Valkey Component Affected: Valkey Server, Data Persistence (if applicable)
  • Risk Severity: High
  • Mitigation Strategies:
    • Implement Valkey clustering or replication (e.g., using Valkey Sentinel or Cluster) for high availability and automatic failover.
    • Establish robust monitoring and alerting for Valkey instance health and performance.
    • Implement proper backup and recovery procedures for Valkey data (using RDB and/or AOF persistence and regular backups).
    • Ensure sufficient resources (CPU, memory, storage) are allocated to the Valkey instance and the underlying infrastructure is reliable.

Threat: Weak or Default Valkey Authentication

  • Description: Using default or weak passwords for Valkey authentication (via requirepass) or disabling authentication entirely. This makes it easy for attackers to brute-force or guess the password or access Valkey without any credentials if exposed.
  • Impact: Full unauthorized access to Valkey data and commands for attackers. This can lead to data breaches, data manipulation, denial of service, and complete compromise of the Valkey instance.
  • Valkey Component Affected: Authentication (requirepass, ACL)
  • Risk Severity: Critical
  • Mitigation Strategies:
    • Always configure a strong and unique password for Valkey authentication using requirepass.
    • Utilize Valkey's ACL feature for more robust and granular user and permission management instead of relying solely on requirepass.
    • Regularly review and rotate Valkey passwords/credentials.
    • Avoid storing Valkey passwords in application code or configuration files in plaintext; use secure secret management practices.

Threat: Vulnerabilities in Valkey Software

  • Description: Exploitation of known or zero-day vulnerabilities in the Valkey software itself. Attackers can leverage these vulnerabilities to gain unauthorized access, cause denial of service, or compromise the Valkey server.
  • Impact: Full compromise of the Valkey instance and potentially the underlying server. This can lead to data breaches, data manipulation, denial of service, and complete system takeover.
  • Valkey Component Affected: Valkey Core Software, Modules (if any)
  • Risk Severity: Critical
  • Mitigation Strategies:
    • Keep Valkey software up-to-date with the latest security patches and updates released by the Valkey project.
    • Subscribe to Valkey security mailing lists or vulnerability databases to stay informed about potential vulnerabilities.
    • Implement a vulnerability management process to regularly scan and address vulnerabilities in Valkey and its dependencies.
    • Consider using a Web Application Firewall (WAF) or Intrusion Detection/Prevention System (IDS/IPS) to detect and block potential exploits targeting Valkey vulnerabilities.
    • Follow secure coding practices and perform security audits of any custom modules or extensions used with Valkey.