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attack-surface.md

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Attack Surface Analysis for nationalsecurityagency/skills-service

Attack Surface: Input Validation Vulnerabilities in API Endpoints

  • Description: API endpoints within skills-service that lack proper input validation are susceptible to injection attacks and unexpected behavior, compromising data integrity and system security.
  • skills-service Contribution: skills-service's API endpoints for managing skills, users, and requests are designed to process user-provided data. Insufficient validation in these endpoints directly creates input validation vulnerabilities.
  • Example: A malicious actor injects a crafted payload into the description field when creating a new skill via the /skills API. If skills-service fails to sanitize this input, it could lead to stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) when other users view the skill description, or potentially SQL Injection if the description is used in database queries without proper parameterization.
  • Impact: Data breach, data manipulation, remote code execution (in severe cases), Cross-Site Scripting (XSS), denial of service, unauthorized access.
  • Risk Severity: Critical
  • Mitigation Strategies:
    • Developers:
      • Mandatory Input Validation: Implement strict input validation for all API endpoints in skills-service. Validate data type, format, length, and allowed characters.
      • Parameterized Queries/ORM: Utilize parameterized queries or Object-Relational Mapping (ORM) frameworks for all database interactions within skills-service to prevent SQL Injection.
      • Output Encoding: Encode output data properly before rendering it in any context (even if primarily an API, consider potential frontend consumption) to prevent XSS.
      • Security Audits: Conduct regular security code reviews and penetration testing specifically focusing on input validation flaws in skills-service APIs.

Attack Surface: Authorization Logic Flaws within skills-service

  • Description: Deficiencies in skills-service's authorization logic can allow unauthorized users to access sensitive data or perform actions beyond their intended privileges, leading to security breaches and data compromise.
  • skills-service Contribution: skills-service is responsible for enforcing access control based on user roles and permissions. Flaws in its implementation of authorization checks directly lead to authorization bypass vulnerabilities.
  • Example: A standard user, by manipulating API requests to the /admin/users endpoint (intended for administrators only) or exploiting logic flaws in the user role verification within skills-service, is able to retrieve or modify administrative user accounts, gaining elevated privileges.
  • Impact: Privilege escalation, unauthorized access to sensitive data, data manipulation, complete account takeover, violation of confidentiality and integrity.
  • Risk Severity: Critical
  • Mitigation Strategies:
    • Developers:
      • Principle of Least Privilege: Design and implement authorization logic in skills-service based on the principle of least privilege. Grant users only the minimum necessary permissions.
      • Centralized Authorization: Enforce authorization checks consistently across all API endpoints and functionalities within skills-service.
      • Thorough Testing: Conduct rigorous testing of authorization logic, including negative testing and edge cases, to identify and fix bypass vulnerabilities.
      • Regular Audits: Perform periodic security audits of the authorization implementation in skills-service to ensure its effectiveness and identify potential weaknesses.

Attack Surface: Vulnerabilities in Dependencies

  • Description: skills-service relies on external libraries and frameworks. Using vulnerable versions of these dependencies introduces significant security risks that can be directly exploited to compromise the application and its underlying infrastructure.
  • skills-service Contribution: skills-service, like most modern applications, depends on numerous libraries (e.g., Spring Boot, database drivers, security libraries). Vulnerabilities in these dependencies directly impact the security of skills-service.
  • Example: A critical remote code execution vulnerability is discovered in an older version of the Spring Boot framework used by skills-service. An attacker exploits this vulnerability to execute arbitrary code on the server hosting skills-service, potentially gaining full control of the system and its data.
  • Impact: Remote code execution, complete system compromise, data breach, denial of service, malware injection.
  • Risk Severity: Critical
  • Mitigation Strategies:
    • Developers:
      • Dependency Management: Implement a robust dependency management process for skills-service. Maintain a clear inventory of all dependencies.
      • Vulnerability Scanning: Integrate automated dependency vulnerability scanning tools into the development pipeline to continuously monitor for known vulnerabilities.
      • Regular Updates: Proactively update dependencies to the latest stable and patched versions. Prioritize security updates and apply them promptly.
      • Patch Management: Establish a clear patch management process for addressing dependency vulnerabilities in skills-service.

Attack Surface: API Rate Limiting and Denial of Service (DoS) (High Severity Potential)

  • Description: While often considered medium, lack of rate limiting on resource-intensive API endpoints in skills-service can be exploited for high severity Denial of Service attacks, especially if critical business functions rely on the service.
  • skills-service Contribution: skills-service likely exposes API endpoints for searching, filtering, and processing skills and user data. If these operations are resource-intensive and lack rate limiting, they become targets for DoS attacks against skills-service.
  • Example: An attacker floods the /skills/search API endpoint of skills-service with a large volume of complex search requests. Without rate limiting, this overwhelms the application server and database, causing performance degradation or complete service outage, impacting users who rely on skills-service for critical skill management functions.
  • Impact: Service unavailability, business disruption, reputational damage, potential financial loss if skills-service supports critical operations.
  • Risk Severity: High (can be Critical depending on business impact)
  • Mitigation Strategies:
    • Developers:
      • API Rate Limiting: Implement rate limiting on all public and potentially resource-intensive API endpoints in skills-service.
      • Adaptive Rate Limiting: Consider using adaptive rate limiting techniques to dynamically adjust limits based on traffic patterns and system load.
      • Resource Optimization: Optimize API performance and database queries within skills-service to handle legitimate load efficiently and reduce susceptibility to DoS.
      • Monitoring and Alerting: Implement monitoring and alerting for API traffic anomalies and potential DoS attacks targeting skills-service.