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attack-surface.md

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Attack Surface Analysis for elemefe/element

Attack Surface: Server-Side Template/Code Injection (SSTI/Code Injection)

  • Description: Injection of malicious Go code into server-side component rendering logic.
  • How element Contributes: element's core functionality involves server-side rendering of components based on Go code and data. This direct involvement in rendering, using Go, creates the primary injection point if user input is mishandled. This is not a general web vulnerability; it's specific to how element processes and renders components.
  • Example: A component displays a user's name: element.NewSpan(user.Name). If user.Name comes directly from an untrusted source and contains Go code (e.g., using a hypothetical template injection syntax specific to element), it could execute arbitrary commands on the server. The specific vulnerability lies in how element handles this data during rendering.
  • Impact: Complete server compromise. An attacker could gain full control of the server.
  • Risk Severity: Critical
  • Mitigation Strategies:
    • Strict Input Validation: Validate all user-supplied data.
    • Output Encoding/Escaping: Use element's built-in safe data binding and output encoding. If these are insufficient or absent, developers must implement robust escaping. This is a direct responsibility when using element.
    • Context-Aware Escaping: Ensure escaping is appropriate for the context.
    • Principle of Least Privilege: Run the application server with minimum privileges.
    • Regular Code Reviews: Focus reviews on how user input is used in element component rendering.
    • Automated Security Testing: Use SAST and DAST tools to detect injection vulnerabilities specifically within the context of element's rendering.

Attack Surface: Cross-Site WebSocket Hijacking (CSWSH)

  • Description: An attacker establishes a WebSocket connection from a malicious website to the element application on behalf of a legitimate user.
  • How element Contributes: element's reliance on WebSockets for its core communication mechanism makes it inherently susceptible to CSWSH if proper origin validation and anti-CSRF measures are not implemented specifically for the WebSocket connections used by element. This is not a general WebSocket vulnerability; it's a vulnerability in how element uses WebSockets.
  • Example: A malicious site establishes a WebSocket connection to the element application. If element doesn't validate the Origin header within its WebSocket handling logic, the connection is established, allowing the malicious site to interact with the application as the user.
  • Impact: Unauthorized actions, data modification, potential session hijacking.
  • Risk Severity: High
  • Mitigation Strategies:
    • Strict Origin Validation: The server must validate the Origin header within the element application's WebSocket handling code. This is a direct responsibility when using element.
    • CSRF Tokens for WebSockets: Implement a CSRF-like token mechanism specifically for the WebSocket connections established by element.
    • SameSite Cookies: Use SameSite cookies to help prevent cross-site requests.

Attack Surface: Unauthorized Event Triggering

  • Description: An attacker triggers server-side events they should not have access to.
  • How element Contributes: element's server-side event handling system is the direct point of vulnerability. If this system doesn't properly authenticate and authorize the user before executing the event handler code, it allows unauthorized actions. This is intrinsic to element's design.
  • Example: An attacker sends a WebSocket message to trigger a sensitive element event (e.g., "delete_user"). If element's event handling logic doesn't verify the user's permissions before executing the associated Go code, the action is performed.
  • Impact: Data loss, data modification, unauthorized access, potential privilege escalation.
  • Risk Severity: High
  • Mitigation Strategies:
    • Authentication and Authorization: Always authenticate and authorize the user within element's event handling logic before executing any event handler. This is a direct responsibility when using element.
    • Session Management: Use secure session management.
    • Input Validation (Event Data): Validate data associated with the event trigger within the context of element's event handling.
    • Least Privilege: Event handlers should have minimum necessary privileges.