mitigations.md

Mitigation Strategies Analysis for zeromicro/go-zero

Mitigation Strategy: Robust API Rate Limiting and Throttling using go-zero Middleware

Description: 1. Identify critical API endpoints: Determine which API endpoints in your go-zero API service are most vulnerable to abuse or resource exhaustion. 2. Implement go-zero's rate limiting middleware: Utilize go-zero/rest/httpx.RateLimit middleware within your go-zero API gateway service. This middleware is specifically designed for go-zero REST APIs. 3. Configure rate limits in api.yaml: Define rate limits directly within your go-zero API service's configuration file (api.yaml). This allows for declarative configuration of rate limiting within the go-zero framework. 4. Customize error responses using go-zero handlers: Ensure rate-limited requests return informative HTTP status codes (e.g., 429 Too Many Requests) and clear error messages by customizing go-zero's error handling mechanisms within your API handlers. 5. Test rate limiting within go-zero environment: Thoroughly test rate limiting configurations within your go-zero application deployment to ensure effectiveness and avoid unintended blocking of legitimate traffic. Threats Mitigated: * Denial of Service (DoS) attacks - Severity: High * Brute-force attacks (e.g., password guessing) - Severity: Medium * Resource exhaustion - Severity: Medium Impact: * DoS attacks - Impact: High * Brute-force attacks - Impact: Medium * Resource exhaustion - Impact: High Currently Implemented: API Gateway service, using go-zero/rest/httpx.RateLimit middleware configured in the api.yaml file. Rate limits are defined for login and resource creation endpoints. Missing Implementation: Rate limiting is not yet implemented for RPC services. Needs custom gRPC interceptors as go-zero's built-in middleware is for REST APIs.

Mitigation Strategy: Strict Input Validation and Sanitization in go-zero API and RPC Handlers

Description: 1. Define input schemas using go-zero request structs: Clearly define the expected data types, formats, and constraints for all API and RPC request parameters using go-zero's request struct definitions within your service logic. 2. Implement validation logic within go-zero handlers: Utilize Go's standard library or validation libraries directly within your go-zero API and RPC handlers to validate incoming request data against the defined schemas. This keeps validation logic tightly integrated with your go-zero service code. 3. Sanitize user inputs within go-zero handlers: Sanitize validated inputs within your go-zero handlers to remove or encode potentially harmful characters or code snippets before processing or storing data. 4. Handle validation errors gracefully using go-zero error responses: Return informative error responses to clients when validation fails, leveraging go-zero's error handling mechanisms to provide consistent and structured error responses. 5. Regularly review and update validation rules in go-zero services: Keep validation rules up-to-date within your go-zero services as application requirements and security threats evolve. Threats Mitigated: * Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) - Severity: High * SQL Injection (if applicable) - Severity: High * Command Injection - Severity: High * Data integrity issues - Severity: Medium Impact: * XSS, SQL Injection, Command Injection - Impact: High * Data integrity issues - Impact: Medium Currently Implemented: Input validation is partially implemented in API handlers using basic type checks within go-zero handlers. RPC handlers rely mostly on protobuf type checking. Missing Implementation: Comprehensive input validation and sanitization are missing in both API and RPC handlers. Need to implement robust validation using a dedicated validation library and sanitize inputs consistently across all go-zero handlers.

Mitigation Strategy: Mutual TLS (mTLS) for go-zero RPC/gRPC Communication

Description: 1. Generate TLS certificates for go-zero services: Generate TLS certificates specifically for your go-zero RPC services and clients. 2. Configure go-zero RPC services for mTLS in service configuration: Configure go-zero RPC services to require client certificates and use TLS by setting TLS options within the go-zero RPC server configuration. 3. Configure go-zero RPC clients for mTLS in client configuration: Configure go-zero RPC clients to present their certificates to the server during connection establishment by setting TLS options within the go-zero RPC client configuration. 4. Enforce certificate verification in go-zero services and clients: Ensure that both go-zero services and clients are configured to verify the validity of presented certificates against a trusted CA or configured certificate pool within their TLS configurations. 5. Certificate rotation and management for go-zero services: Implement a process for regular certificate rotation and secure management of private keys used by go-zero services to maintain security. Threats Mitigated: * Man-in-the-Middle (MITM) attacks - Severity: High * Unauthorized service access - Severity: High * Spoofing and impersonation - Severity: Medium Impact: * MITM attacks - Impact: High * Unauthorized service access - Impact: High * Spoofing and impersonation - Impact: Medium Currently Implemented: mTLS is partially implemented between the API Gateway and some backend RPC services. TLS configuration is done directly in go-zero service code. Missing Implementation: mTLS is not consistently implemented across all go-zero RPC services. Certificate management is manual. Need to extend mTLS to all inter-service communication and automate certificate management, potentially integrating with go-zero's configuration system.

Mitigation Strategy: Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) using go-zero Middleware/Interceptors

Description: 1. Define roles and permissions relevant to go-zero services: Define roles and permissions that align with the functionalities and resources exposed by your go-zero API and RPC services. 2. Implement authorization middleware/interceptors in go-zero: Develop or utilize go-zero middleware for API services and interceptors for RPC services to enforce RBAC policies. These components are designed to integrate seamlessly with go-zero's request handling pipeline. 3. Integrate with go-zero authentication system: Integrate RBAC with your go-zero application's authentication system to retrieve user roles after successful authentication, potentially leveraging go-zero's context propagation features. 4. Enforce least privilege principle within go-zero services: Grant users only the minimum necessary permissions required to perform their tasks within the context of your go-zero application. 5. Centralized policy management (optional) for go-zero RBAC: Consider using a centralized policy management system for more complex RBAC scenarios in go-zero, potentially integrating it with go-zero's configuration or dependency injection mechanisms. Threats Mitigated: * Unauthorized access to sensitive data or functionality - Severity: High * Privilege escalation - Severity: Medium * Data breaches due to compromised accounts - Severity: Medium Impact: * Unauthorized access - Impact: High * Privilege escalation - Impact: Medium * Data breaches - Impact: Medium Currently Implemented: Basic authorization checks are implemented in some API endpoints based on user roles stored in JWT claims, using custom middleware in go-zero API service. RPC services lack RBAC. Missing Implementation: Comprehensive RBAC is missing across both API and RPC services. Need to implement a consistent RBAC framework using go-zero middleware/interceptors and potentially integrate with a policy engine for complex scenarios.

Mitigation Strategy: Secure Configuration Management using go-zero Configuration

Description: 1. Separate configuration from go-zero code using conf package: Store configuration settings outside of your go-zero application code, utilizing go-zero's conf package and configuration files (e.g., .yaml). 2. Use environment variables for sensitive configuration in go-zero deployments: Store sensitive configuration values as environment variables in your go-zero application deployments, leveraging go-zero's ability to read environment variables during configuration loading. 3. Implement secrets management (external system) for go-zero: Integrate with a dedicated secrets management system (e.g., HashiCorp Vault) to securely manage secrets used by your go-zero application, accessing secrets through environment variables or go-zero's configuration loading mechanisms. 4. Avoid hardcoding secrets in go-zero code or configuration files: Never hardcode secrets directly within your go-zero application code or configuration files. 5. Restrict access to go-zero configuration files and secrets management: Limit access to go-zero configuration files and secrets management systems to authorized personnel and processes only, ensuring secure configuration management within your go-zero environment. Threats Mitigated: * Exposure of sensitive credentials - Severity: High * Unauthorized access to infrastructure - Severity: Medium Impact: * Exposure of sensitive credentials - Impact: High * Unauthorized access to infrastructure - Impact: Medium Currently Implemented: Configuration is separated from code using go-zero/core/conf and .yaml files. Environment variables are used for some sensitive settings, leveraging go-zero's configuration loading. Missing Implementation: Secrets management system is not yet implemented. Sensitive secrets are currently stored as environment variables or encrypted configuration files. Need to integrate with a secrets management system like HashiCorp Vault to improve secret security and leverage go-zero's configuration to access secrets securely.

Mitigation Strategy: Regular Updates of Go-Zero Framework and Dependencies

Description: 1. Monitor go-zero releases: Regularly monitor the official go-zero GitHub repository and release notes for new versions and security updates. 2. Update go-zero framework: Update the go-zero framework in your application to the latest stable version to benefit from security patches and bug fixes provided by the go-zero team. 3. Update go-zero dependencies: Ensure that all dependencies used by your go-zero application, including those managed by go.mod, are regularly updated to their latest versions to address known vulnerabilities. 4. Test after updates: Thoroughly test your go-zero application after updating the framework or dependencies to ensure compatibility and identify any regressions. Threats Mitigated: * Exploitation of known vulnerabilities in go-zero framework - Severity: High * Exploitation of known vulnerabilities in go-zero dependencies - Severity: High Impact: * Exploitation of known vulnerabilities - Impact: High - Reduces the risk of exploitation by patching known vulnerabilities. Currently Implemented: Manual updates of go-zero framework and dependencies are performed periodically. Missing Implementation: Automated dependency checking and update process is missing. Need to implement a system for regularly checking for updates and automating the update process for go-zero framework and its dependencies.