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sec-design.md

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Okay, let's create a design document for the natives project, focusing on aspects relevant to threat modeling.

BUSINESS POSTURE

Business Priorities and Goals:

  • Provide a reliable and efficient way to access Node.js's internal native modules.
  • Minimize the overhead of accessing these modules.
  • Maintain compatibility across different Node.js versions.
  • Simplify debugging and introspection of native modules.
  • Offer a stable and consistent API for developers.

Most Important Business Risks:

  • Security vulnerabilities introduced by exposing internal Node.js modules could lead to system compromise.
  • Compatibility issues with future Node.js versions could break existing applications relying on this module.
  • Performance degradation caused by inefficient access to native modules could impact application responsiveness.
  • Instability or unexpected behavior could lead to application crashes or data corruption.
  • Lack of adoption due to complexity or perceived risks could limit the project's impact.

SECURITY POSTURE

Existing Security Controls:

  • security control: Code Review: The project is hosted on GitHub, suggesting that code reviews are part of the development process. (Implicit in the open-source nature and GitHub platform).
  • security control: Testing: The project includes a test suite (test/test.js), indicating efforts to ensure code correctness and prevent regressions. (Visible in the repository structure).
  • security control: Dependency Management: The project uses package.json and package-lock.json to manage dependencies, which helps control the supply chain to some extent. (Visible in the repository).
  • security control: Linter: Project is using eslint. (Visible in package.json)

Accepted Risks:

  • accepted risk: Reliance on undocumented Node.js internals: The project inherently depends on the internal structure of Node.js, which is subject to change without notice. This is a fundamental aspect of the project's functionality.
  • accepted risk: Potential for misuse: Exposing native modules could be exploited by malicious actors if used improperly in an application. This risk is mitigated by user awareness and responsible usage.

Recommended Security Controls:

  • security control: Sandboxing: Explore the possibility of using Node.js's vm module or other sandboxing techniques to isolate the execution of native modules, limiting their potential impact on the host system.
  • security control: Input Validation: Although this module itself doesn't take direct user input, any application using it should rigorously validate any input used to access native modules through this library.
  • security control: Security Audits: Conduct regular security audits, both manual and automated, to identify potential vulnerabilities.
  • security control: Least Privilege: Document clearly which native modules are exposed and advise users to only access the ones absolutely necessary for their application, minimizing the attack surface.
  • security control: Fuzzing: Implement fuzz testing to identify unexpected behavior and potential crashes when accessing native modules with various inputs.

Security Requirements:

  • Authentication: Not directly applicable to this module itself, as it's a library. However, applications using this module should implement appropriate authentication mechanisms.
  • Authorization: Not directly applicable to this module itself. Applications using it should implement proper authorization to control access to sensitive native modules.
  • Input Validation: As mentioned above, applications using this module must validate any input that influences which native modules are accessed.
  • Cryptography: Not directly applicable to this module itself, but applications using it might leverage native cryptographic modules. If so, they should follow cryptographic best practices.

DESIGN

C4 CONTEXT

graph LR
    User["User/Application"] -- "Uses" --> Natives["Natives Library"]
    Natives -- "Accesses" --> NodeInternals["Node.js Internals"]
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Element Descriptions:

  • Element:

    • Name: User/Application
    • Type: User/External System
    • Description: A Node.js application or user that utilizes the natives library.
    • Responsibilities: Consumes the natives API to access Node.js internal modules.
    • Security controls: Implements application-level security controls (authentication, authorization, input validation).

  • Element:

    • Name: Natives Library
    • Type: Library/Project
    • Description: The natives library itself, providing an interface to Node.js internals.
    • Responsibilities: Provides a stable API for accessing native modules, handles version compatibility, and manages internal caching.
    • Security controls: Code reviews, testing, dependency management.

  • Element:

    • Name: Node.js Internals
    • Type: External System
    • Description: The internal, undocumented native modules of Node.js.
    • Responsibilities: Provides core functionality of Node.js.
    • Security controls: Relies on Node.js's own security measures and development practices.

C4 CONTAINER

Since this project is a simple library, the container diagram is essentially the same as the context diagram. It doesn't have separate deployable units.

graph LR
    User["User/Application"] -- "Uses" --> Natives["Natives Library"]
    Natives -- "Accesses" --> NodeInternals["Node.js Internals"]
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Element Descriptions:

  • Element:

    • Name: User/Application
    • Type: User/External System
    • Description: A Node.js application or user that utilizes the natives library.
    • Responsibilities: Consumes the natives API to access Node.js internal modules.
    • Security controls: Implements application-level security controls (authentication, authorization, input validation).

  • Element:

    • Name: Natives Library
    • Type: Library/Project
    • Description: The natives library itself, providing an interface to Node.js internals.
    • Responsibilities: Provides a stable API for accessing native modules, handles version compatibility, and manages internal caching.
    • Security controls: Code reviews, testing, dependency management.

  • Element:

    • Name: Node.js Internals
    • Type: External System
    • Description: The internal, undocumented native modules of Node.js.
    • Responsibilities: Provides core functionality of Node.js.
    • Security controls: Relies on Node.js's own security measures and development practices.

DEPLOYMENT

Possible Deployment Solutions:

  1. NPM Package: The standard way to distribute Node.js libraries. Users install it via npm install natives.
  2. Bundled with Application: The library's code could be directly included within an application's codebase.
  3. Git Submodule: The library could be included as a Git submodule within a larger project.

Chosen Solution (NPM Package):

graph LR
    Dev["Developer"] -- "Publishes to" --> NPM["NPM Registry"]
    App["Application Server"] -- "Downloads from" --> NPM
    App -- "Includes" --> NativesLib["Natives Library"]
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Element Descriptions:

  • Element:

    • Name: Developer
    • Type: Person
    • Description: The developer of the natives library.
    • Responsibilities: Writes code, runs tests, and publishes the package to NPM.
    • Security controls: Uses secure credentials for NPM publishing.

  • Element:

    • Name: NPM Registry
    • Type: External System
    • Description: The public NPM registry, hosting the natives package.
    • Responsibilities: Stores and distributes the package.
    • Security controls: NPM's own security measures (e.g., two-factor authentication for publishers).

  • Element:

    • Name: Application Server
    • Type: Server
    • Description: The server where an application using natives is deployed.
    • Responsibilities: Runs the application code.
    • Security controls: Standard server security practices (firewalls, intrusion detection, etc.).

  • Element:

    • Name: Natives Library
    • Type: Library
    • Description: The natives library, downloaded from NPM.
    • Responsibilities: Provides access to Node.js internals.
    • Security controls: Inherits security from the NPM download process and the application's environment.

  • Element:

    • Name: Application
    • Type: Application
    • Description: Application that is using Natives Library.
    • Responsibilities: Application logic.
    • Security controls: Implemented security controls.

BUILD

graph LR
    Dev["Developer"] -- "Commits code" --> GitHub["GitHub Repository"]
    GitHub -- "Triggers" --> GHWork["GitHub Workflow"]
    GHWork -- "Runs tests" --> Tests["Test Suite"]
    GHWork -- "Runs linter" --> Linter["ESLint"]
    GHWork -- "Publishes" --> NPM["NPM Registry"]
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Build Process Description:

  1. Developer commits code changes to the GitHub repository.
  2. GitHub Actions workflow is triggered.
  3. The workflow sets up the Node.js environment.
  4. Dependencies are installed using npm install.
  5. The test suite (test/test.js) is executed using npm test.
  6. The linter (ESLint) is executed.
  7. If tests and linter pass, and the commit is tagged appropriately, the workflow publishes the package to the NPM registry using npm publish.

Security Controls in Build Process:

  • security control: Automated Testing: The test suite helps ensure code quality and prevent regressions.
  • security control: Linting: ESLint enforces code style and helps identify potential errors.
  • security control: Dependency Management: package-lock.json ensures consistent dependency versions, reducing the risk of supply chain attacks.
  • security control: GitHub Actions: Provides a controlled and auditable build environment.
  • security control: NPM Publish Authentication: Requires secure credentials to publish to NPM, preventing unauthorized package releases.

RISK ASSESSMENT

Critical Business Processes:

  • Providing reliable access to Node.js native modules for applications that depend on them.
  • Maintaining the stability and compatibility of the library across Node.js versions.

Data to Protect:

  • This library itself doesn't handle sensitive data directly. However, it provides access to Node.js internals, which could be used to access or manipulate sensitive data within an application. Therefore, the primary concern is the integrity of the library and the security of the applications that use it.
  • Data Sensitivity: Indirectly, the sensitivity is high, as misuse could lead to system compromise or data breaches within applications using the library.

QUESTIONS & ASSUMPTIONS

Questions:

  • Are there any specific Node.js versions that need to be prioritized for compatibility?
  • What level of performance overhead is considered acceptable?
  • Are there any specific security certifications or compliance requirements that need to be considered?
  • What is the expected usage pattern of this library (e.g., frequency of access to native modules)?

Assumptions:

  • BUSINESS POSTURE: The primary goal is to provide a useful tool for the Node.js community, balancing functionality with security.
  • SECURITY POSTURE: Users of the library are responsible for securing their own applications and understanding the risks of accessing native modules.
  • DESIGN: The library will be distributed as an NPM package and will follow standard Node.js development practices. The build process will be automated using GitHub Actions.