Skip to content

Latest commit

 

History

History
27 lines (22 loc) · 4.92 KB

attack-surface.md

File metadata and controls

27 lines (22 loc) · 4.92 KB

Attack Surface Analysis for gui-cs/terminal.gui

Attack Surface: Unvalidated Keyboard Input leading to Command Injection (Indirect)

  • Description: An attacker can inject malicious commands by providing crafted keyboard input through terminal.gui UI elements. If the application using terminal.gui fails to validate this input after it's received from terminal.gui components, it can lead to the execution of unintended system commands. terminal.gui provides the input mechanism, but the vulnerability lies in the application's handling of this input.
  • How terminal.gui contributes: terminal.gui provides UI elements like TextField and CommandLine that are designed to capture user keyboard input and make it readily available to the application for processing. This input becomes a potential source of malicious commands if not handled securely by the application.
  • Example: An application uses a terminal.gui TextField to get a user-provided path. This path is then directly used in System.Diagnostics.Process.Start() to execute a command. An attacker could input a path like "; rm -rf /". If the application doesn't sanitize the input from the TextField before passing it to Process.Start(), it could execute the rm -rf / command.
  • Impact: Full system compromise, data loss, unauthorized access, denial of service.
  • Risk Severity: Critical
  • Mitigation Strategies:
    • Strict Input Validation (Application-Side): The application must implement rigorous input validation on all keyboard input obtained from terminal.gui components before using it in any system commands or sensitive operations. This validation should occur after terminal.gui has processed the input.
    • Avoid Dynamic Command Construction: Minimize or eliminate the need to dynamically construct system commands based on user input from terminal.gui. Prefer using APIs or libraries that avoid direct command execution where possible.
    • Parameterization (Application-Side): If system commands are necessary, use parameterized command execution methods to separate commands from data, preventing injection. Ensure the application correctly utilizes parameterization with input from terminal.gui.

Attack Surface: Unsafe Event Handlers leading to Logic Vulnerabilities

  • Description: Vulnerabilities can be introduced within the application's event handlers that are attached to terminal.gui UI elements. If these handlers, which are application code responding to terminal.gui events, are not implemented securely, they can become points of exploitation. While not a flaw in terminal.gui itself, the library's event-driven nature makes secure handler implementation crucial.
  • How terminal.gui contributes: terminal.gui's architecture is heavily event-driven. Applications using terminal.gui must define event handlers to react to user interactions with UI elements. Insecurely written handlers, triggered by user actions within terminal.gui, can introduce vulnerabilities into the application's logic.
  • Example: A Button in a terminal.gui application has a Clicked event handler. This handler retrieves text from a TextField (also in terminal.gui) and uses it to make a database query without sanitization. A SQL injection vulnerability could be introduced in this event handler, triggered by a user clicking the button after entering malicious SQL in the TextField.
  • Impact: Data breach, data manipulation, unauthorized access, denial of service, depending on the vulnerability introduced in the event handler.
  • Risk Severity: High to Critical (depending on the nature of the vulnerability in the handler and the sensitivity of the affected application logic).
  • Mitigation Strategies:
    • Secure Event Handler Development (Application-Side): Developers must follow secure coding practices when writing event handlers for terminal.gui elements. This includes input validation, output sanitization, proper error handling, and avoiding hardcoding sensitive information within handlers.
    • Code Reviews for Event Handlers: Specifically focus code reviews on event handlers attached to terminal.gui elements, as these are direct interaction points with user input and application logic.
    • Principle of Least Privilege (Handler Context - Application-Side): Ensure event handlers operate with the minimum necessary privileges. Avoid granting excessive permissions to the code executed within terminal.gui event handlers.
    • Security Testing of Event Flows: Perform security testing that specifically targets the event flows within the terminal.gui application, focusing on how user interactions with UI elements trigger event handlers and application logic.