attack-tree.md

Attack Tree Analysis for facebookincubator/socketrocket

Objective: To gain unauthorized access to sensitive data or functionality within the application using socketrocket, or to disrupt the application's operation, by exploiting vulnerabilities originating from or exacerbated by the socketrocket library.

Attack Tree Visualization

• Compromise Application Using SocketRocket [CRITICAL NODE]
  • Exploit SocketRocket Vulnerabilities [HIGH-RISK PATH]
    • Memory Corruption Vulnerabilities [HIGH-RISK PATH]
      • Buffer Overflow in Frame Parsing [CRITICAL NODE]
      • Use-After-Free in Connection Handling [CRITICAL NODE]
  • Denial of Service (DoS) Vulnerabilities [HIGH-RISK PATH]
    • Resource Exhaustion via Connection Flooding [CRITICAL NODE]
  • Information Disclosure Vulnerabilities [HIGH-RISK PATH]
    • Memory Leaks exposing sensitive data [CRITICAL NODE]
    • Insecure Logging Practices [CRITICAL NODE]
  • Exploit Application Misuse of SocketRocket [HIGH-RISK PATH]
    • Insecure Configuration of SocketRocket [HIGH-RISK PATH]
      • Disabling TLS/SSL Verification [CRITICAL NODE]
    • Logic Flaws in Application's WebSocket Handling [HIGH-RISK PATH]
      • Lack of Input Validation on WebSocket Messages [CRITICAL NODE]
      • Improper Authentication/Authorization over WebSocket [CRITICAL NODE]
      • Command Injection via WebSocket Messages [CRITICAL NODE]
    • Information Leakage in Application's WebSocket Communication [HIGH-RISK PATH]
      • Exposing Sensitive Data in WebSocket Messages [CRITICAL NODE]
      • Verbose Logging of WebSocket Communication [CRITICAL NODE]

Attack Tree Path: Exploit SocketRocket Vulnerabilities [HIGH-RISK PATH]

• Threat: This path focuses on directly exploiting vulnerabilities within the socketrocket library itself. If successful, these attacks can have widespread impact on all applications using the vulnerable version of the library.
• Attack Vectors:
  • Memory Corruption Vulnerabilities [HIGH-RISK PATH]:
    • Buffer Overflow in Frame Parsing [CRITICAL NODE]:
      • Attack Vector: An attacker sends maliciously crafted WebSocket frames that are designed to exceed the buffer limits during frame parsing within socketrocket.
      • Impact: Memory corruption can lead to crashes, denial of service, or, more critically, arbitrary code execution if the attacker can control the overflowed data.
      • Mitigation: Thorough code review of frame parsing logic in socketrocket, fuzzing with malformed frames, using safe memory handling practices, and applying security updates to socketrocket.
    • Use-After-Free in Connection Handling [CRITICAL NODE]:
      • Attack Vector: An attacker triggers a race condition during WebSocket connection closure and message processing. This can lead to the use of memory that has already been freed, resulting in unpredictable behavior.
      • Impact: Use-after-free vulnerabilities can also lead to crashes, denial of service, and potentially arbitrary code execution.
      • Mitigation: Careful review of connection state management and resource handling in socketrocket, robust synchronization mechanisms to prevent race conditions, and memory safety checks.

Attack Tree Path: Denial of Service (DoS) Vulnerabilities [HIGH-RISK PATH]

• Threat: This path aims to disrupt the application's availability by overwhelming its resources or the resources of the server it connects to.
• Attack Vectors:
  • Resource Exhaustion via Connection Flooding [CRITICAL NODE]:
    • Attack Vector: An attacker rapidly opens and closes a large number of WebSocket connections to the application's server.
    • Impact: This can exhaust server resources (CPU, memory, network connections), making the application unresponsive to legitimate users. It can also impact the client-side application if it is not designed to handle excessive connection attempts.
    • Mitigation: Implement server-side rate limiting on connection requests, configure resource limits on both server and client, and potentially implement connection throttling in the application.

Attack Tree Path: Information Disclosure Vulnerabilities [HIGH-RISK PATH]

• Threat: This path focuses on gaining unauthorized access to sensitive information handled by the application or exposed by socketrocket.
• Attack Vectors:
  • Memory Leaks exposing sensitive data [CRITICAL NODE]:
    • Attack Vector: Specific sequences of operations in socketrocket or the application using it might lead to memory leaks. If sensitive data is present in the leaked memory, it could be exposed.
    • Impact: Exposure of sensitive data can lead to privacy breaches, identity theft, and other security incidents.
    • Mitigation: Memory leak detection tools, careful memory management practices in socketrocket and the application, and regular security audits.
  • Insecure Logging Practices [CRITICAL NODE]:
    • Attack Vector: The application or socketrocket might log sensitive data exchanged over WebSocket connections, or log verbose error messages that reveal internal system details.
    • Impact: Logs can be accessed by attackers if not properly secured, leading to information disclosure.
    • Mitigation: Review logging practices to ensure sensitive data is not logged, implement secure logging mechanisms, and restrict access to log files.

Attack Tree Path: Exploit Application Misuse of SocketRocket [HIGH-RISK PATH]

• Threat: This path targets vulnerabilities introduced by developers incorrectly using or configuring the socketrocket library in their application. These are often the most common and easily exploitable vulnerabilities.
• Attack Vectors:
  • Insecure Configuration of SocketRocket [HIGH-RISK PATH]:
    • Disabling TLS/SSL Verification [CRITICAL NODE]:
      • Attack Vector: The application code might disable or weaken TLS/SSL certificate verification for WebSocket connections, often for development or testing purposes, but sometimes mistakenly in production.
      • Impact: Disabling TLS verification makes the WebSocket communication vulnerable to Man-in-the-Middle (MitM) attacks, allowing attackers to intercept and potentially modify data.
      • Mitigation: Never disable TLS/SSL verification in production. Enforce strict TLS configuration and consider certificate pinning for enhanced security.
  • Logic Flaws in Application's WebSocket Handling [HIGH-RISK PATH]:
    • Lack of Input Validation on WebSocket Messages [CRITICAL NODE]:
      • Attack Vector: The application fails to properly validate and sanitize data received via WebSocket messages before processing it.
      • Impact: This can lead to various injection vulnerabilities (e.g., command injection, cross-site scripting (XSS), SQL injection if data is used in database queries), allowing attackers to execute arbitrary code, manipulate data, or compromise user accounts.
      • Mitigation: Always validate and sanitize all input received via WebSocket messages. Use appropriate validation techniques based on the expected data type and context.
    • Improper Authentication/Authorization over WebSocket [CRITICAL NODE]:
      • Attack Vector: The application's authentication or authorization mechanisms for WebSocket communication are flawed or bypassed.
      • Impact: Attackers can gain unauthorized access to sensitive functionality or data through the WebSocket connection.
      • Mitigation: Implement robust authentication and authorization mechanisms specifically for WebSocket communication, ensuring they are properly integrated with the application's overall security model.
    • Command Injection via WebSocket Messages [CRITICAL NODE]:
      • Attack Vector: The application executes system commands based on data received via WebSocket messages without proper sanitization.
      • Impact: Attackers can execute arbitrary commands on the server, potentially gaining full control of the system.
      • Mitigation: Never execute system commands directly based on user-provided input, especially from WebSocket messages. If command execution is absolutely necessary, use secure methods to sanitize input and restrict privileges.
  • Information Leakage in Application's WebSocket Communication [HIGH-RISK PATH]:
    • Exposing Sensitive Data in WebSocket Messages [CRITICAL NODE]:
      • Attack Vector: The application unintentionally transmits sensitive data (e.g., API keys, passwords, personal information) within WebSocket messages, even if the connection is encrypted.
      • Impact: If WebSocket messages are intercepted (e.g., through compromised logs, network monitoring in development environments, or future vulnerabilities), sensitive data can be exposed.
      • Mitigation: Carefully review WebSocket message content to ensure no sensitive data is transmitted unnecessarily. Implement data minimization principles and consider encrypting sensitive data within the message payload even if the WebSocket connection is encrypted.
    • Verbose Logging of WebSocket Communication [CRITICAL NODE]:
      • Attack Vector: The application logs the full content of WebSocket messages, including potentially sensitive data.
      • Impact: As with general insecure logging, this can expose sensitive data if logs are compromised.
      • Mitigation: Avoid logging the full content of WebSocket messages, especially if they contain sensitive data. Log only necessary information for debugging and security monitoring, and implement secure logging practices.