mitigations.md

Mitigation Strategies Analysis for symfony/console

Mitigation Strategy: Strict Input Validation and Sanitization (Within the Command)

Description:

1. Identify All Input Points: Within each console command, meticulously list every argument and option. Document the expected data type, format, and any constraints (e.g., maximum length, allowed values).
2. Implement Validation (using Assert\ constraints): Inside the command's configure() method (for defining options/arguments) and the execute() method (for processing input), leverage Symfony's Validation component.
   • For each input, add appropriate Assert\ constraints:
     • Assert\Type: Ensure correct data type (integer, string, boolean, array).
     • Assert\NotBlank: Prevent empty values for required inputs.
     • Assert\Length: Set minimum/maximum string lengths.
     • Assert\Choice: Restrict input to a predefined set of allowed values.
     • Assert\Regex: Enforce specific patterns using regular expressions.
     • Assert\Email: Validate email addresses.
     • Assert\Url: Validate URLs.
     • Assert\Range: Validate numeric ranges.
   • For complex validation, create custom validator classes.
3. Handle Validation Errors (within execute()): In the execute() method, check for validation errors. If errors are found, display informative error messages to the user (using the OutputInterface) and exit the command gracefully (non-zero exit code). Do not proceed if validation fails.
4. Sanitize Output (if necessary, within execute()): If the command's output includes user-supplied data, sanitize it before displaying it to prevent potential issues (though XSS is less common in console applications). Use appropriate escaping functions.

• Threats Mitigated:

  • Command Injection (Argument/Option Manipulation): (Severity: Critical) - Prevents attackers from injecting malicious code or altering command behavior.
  • SQL Injection (subset of Command Injection): (Severity: Critical) - If the command interacts with a database, validation helps prevent SQL injection.
  • Denial of Service (DoS): (Severity: High) - Length/type checks prevent excessively large or malformed inputs.
  • Information Disclosure: (Severity: Medium) - Output sanitization prevents accidental data exposure.

• Impact:

  • Command Injection: Risk reduced from Critical to Low.
  • SQL Injection: Risk reduced from Critical to Low (with parameter binding, which is a separate, but related, mitigation).
  • DoS: Risk reduced from High to Medium.
  • Information Disclosure: Risk reduced from Medium to Low.

• Currently Implemented:

  • Basic type checking (Assert\Type) in App\Command\UserCreateCommand for username and email.
  • Length restrictions (Assert\Length) for username.

• Missing Implementation:

  • App\Command\ProcessDataCommand: No validation for the file argument (a critical vulnerability). Needs Assert\NotBlank, Assert\File (or custom validator).
  • App\Command\UserCreateCommand: Missing Assert\Email for email. Missing Assert\Choice for the optional role argument.
  • No commands sanitize output; review on a case-by-case basis.

Mitigation Strategy: Avoid Direct Shell Execution (Use Symfony's Process Component Within Commands)

Description:

1. Identify Shell Commands (within command code): Search the codebase within your console commands for uses of exec(), shell_exec(), system(), passthru(), or backticks.
2. Replace with Process: Refactor each instance to use Symfony's Process component.
3. Use Array Arguments (with Process): Always pass command arguments as an array to Process, never as a concatenated string. This is the key to preventing injection.
4. Handle Output and Errors (within execute()): Use Process methods (getOutput(), getErrorOutput(), isSuccessful(), getExitCode()) to manage the command's output and status.
5. Set Timeouts (on the Process object): Use setTimeout() and setIdleTimeout() on the Process object to prevent long-running processes.

• Threats Mitigated:

  • Command Injection (Argument/Option Manipulation): (Severity: Critical) - Eliminates the primary vector for command injection.

• Impact:

  • Command Injection: Risk reduced from Critical to Very Low.

• Currently Implemented:

  • App\Command\BackupDatabaseCommand uses Process correctly (with array arguments).

• Missing Implementation:

  • App\Command\ProcessDataCommand uses shell_exec() (a critical vulnerability). Needs refactoring to use Process.

Mitigation Strategy: Environment-Specific Commands (Conditional Registration)

Description:

1. Categorize Commands: Determine which commands are safe for each environment (development, staging, production). Document this.
2. Conditional Registration (in console configuration): Modify the console application's configuration (e.g., config/services.yaml or a dedicated console config file) to conditionally register commands based on the environment (%kernel.environment%).
   • Use service tags and autoconfiguration.
   • Alternatively, add logic within the command's configure() method to disable it based on the environment. This is less preferred, as it clutters the command itself.

• Threats Mitigated:

  • Unauthorized Command Execution: (Severity: High) - Prevents unauthorized execution of sensitive commands.
  • Accidental Data Modification/Deletion (in Production): (Severity: High) - Prevents accidental execution of dangerous commands in production.

• Impact:

  • Unauthorized Command Execution: Risk reduced from High to Low (depending on authentication/authorization, which are separate mitigations).
  • Accidental Data Modification/Deletion: Risk reduced from High to Low.

• Currently Implemented:

  • App\Command\ClearCacheCommand is disabled in production via a conditional service definition in config/services.yaml.

• Missing Implementation:

  • A comprehensive review of all commands and their environment suitability is needed.

Mitigation Strategy: Secure Error Handling (Within the Command's execute() Method)

Description:

1. try-catch Blocks: Wrap potentially error-prone code within the execute() method of each command in try-catch blocks.
2. Generic Error Messages (to OutputInterface): In the catch block, display a generic error message to the user (using the command's OutputInterface) that does not reveal sensitive information.
3. Detailed Logging (separate from console output): Log full exception details (including stack traces) to a secure log file (using Monolog or similar). This is separate from the console output.

• Threats Mitigated:

  • Information Disclosure: (Severity: Medium) - Prevents sensitive information from being exposed through error messages displayed on the console.

• Impact:

  • Information Disclosure: Risk reduced from Medium to Low.

• Currently Implemented:

  • Basic try-catch blocks are used in some commands, but not consistently.

• Missing Implementation:

  • Consistent use of try-catch blocks is missing in several commands.

Mitigation Strategy: Resource Limits (Within the Command's execute() Method)

Description:

1. Identify Resource-Intensive Commands: Determine which commands might consume significant resources.
2. Set PHP Limits (within execute()): Use PHP's set_time_limit() and memory_limit() functions within the execute() method of resource-intensive commands to set appropriate limits. Be aware of their limitations.

• Threats Mitigated:

  • Denial of Service (DoS): (Severity: High) - Limits the impact of resource-intensive commands.

• Impact:

  • DoS: Risk reduced from High to Medium.

• Currently Implemented:

  • set_time_limit(60) is used in App\Command\ProcessDataCommand.

• Missing Implementation:

  • memory_limit is not explicitly set in any commands. A review of resource usage is needed.