mitigations.md

Mitigation Strategies Analysis for mislav/will_paginate

Mitigation Strategy: Limit Maximum Page Number

• Description:

  1. Identify Pagination Controllers: Locate all controller actions that use will_paginate to display paginated results (search for .paginate).
  2. Define a Constant: Create a constant (e.g., MAX_PAGE) to store the maximum allowed page number.
  3. Implement the Check: Before calling .paginate, retrieve and convert the page parameter (params[:page]) to an integer.
  4. Enforce the Limit:
     • If page <= 0, set page = 1.
     • If page > MAX_PAGE, set page = MAX_PAGE.
  5. Pass the Sanitized Value: Pass the sanitized page value to the .paginate method.
  6. Test: Test with edge cases (page 0, 1, MAX_PAGE, MAX_PAGE + 1).

• Threats Mitigated:

  • Excessive Page Number Requests (Denial of Service / Performance Degradation): Severity: High.
  • Information Disclosure (Leaking Total Count - Indirectly): Severity: Low.

• Impact:

  • Excessive Page Number Requests: Risk significantly reduced.
  • Information Disclosure: Risk slightly reduced.

• Currently Implemented:

  • Example: Implemented in app/controllers/products_controller.rb (index action). MAX_PAGE in app/controllers/application_controller.rb.

• Missing Implementation:

  • Example: Missing in app/controllers/admin/users_controller.rb (index action).

Mitigation Strategy: Validate per_page Parameter

• Description:

  1. Identify Pagination Controllers: Locate controller actions using .paginate.
  2. Define a Constant: Create a constant (e.g., MAX_PER_PAGE).
  3. Implement the Check: Before calling .paginate, retrieve and convert params[:per_page] to an integer.
  4. Enforce the Limit:
     • If per_page <= 0, set per_page to a default (e.g., 20).
     • If per_page > MAX_PER_PAGE, set per_page = MAX_PER_PAGE.
  5. Pass the Sanitized Value: Pass the sanitized per_page to .paginate.
  6. Test: Test with various per_page values, including edge cases.

• Threats Mitigated:

  • Excessive Data Retrieval (Denial of Service / Performance Degradation): Severity: High.

• Impact:

  • Excessive Data Retrieval: Risk significantly reduced.

• Currently Implemented:

  • Example: Implemented in app/controllers/products_controller.rb and app/controllers/articles_controller.rb. MAX_PER_PAGE in config/initializers/pagination.rb.

• Missing Implementation:

  • Example: Missing in app/controllers/search_controller.rb.

Mitigation Strategy: Disable Total Count Calculation (if not needed)

• Description:

  1. Identify Pagination Views: Locate views where will_paginate's helper is used.
  2. Analyze UI Requirements: Determine if the exact total count is essential.
  3. Customize the Renderer: Create a custom renderer for will_paginate that doesn't include the total count. Inherit from WillPaginate::ActionView::LinkRenderer and override methods like total_pages and html_container.
  4. Configure will_paginate: In your view, use the :renderer option with the will_paginate helper to specify your custom renderer.
  5. Test: Verify pagination links display correctly without the total count.

• Threats Mitigated:

  • Information Disclosure (Leaking Total Count): Severity: Medium.

• Impact:

  • Information Disclosure: Risk eliminated (if the total count is not needed). Performance improvement.

• Currently Implemented:

  • Example: Implemented for the "Recent Activity" feed (app/views/dashboard/index.html.erb). Custom renderer: app/helpers/custom_pagination_renderer.rb.

• Missing Implementation:

  • Example: Missing in app/views/products/index.html.erb.

Mitigation Strategy: Provide a Custom count Option (for complex queries)

• Description:

  1. Identify Complex Queries: Identify controller actions using will_paginate with complex ActiveRecord queries.
  2. Analyze Query Performance: Use database profiling tools to examine the performance of the COUNT(*) query.
  3. Implement Custom Count Logic: If the default COUNT(*) is inefficient, create a custom method (model or helper) for a more efficient count. This might involve:
     • Optimized SQL.
     • Cached count (if appropriate).
     • Different counting technique.
  4. Pass the count Option: In the paginate method call, use the :count option:
     • String with custom SQL.
     • Symbol of the custom method.
  5. Test: Test pagination with the custom count logic.

• Threats Mitigated:

  • Unexpected Behavior with Complex Queries (Incorrect Pagination / Errors): Severity: Medium.
  • Performance Issues with Complex Queries (Denial of Service - Indirectly): Severity: Low.

• Impact:

  • Unexpected Behavior: Risk significantly reduced.
  • Performance Issues: Risk reduced.

• Currently Implemented:

  • Example: Implemented in app/controllers/reports_controller.rb (sales_report action). Custom method: Report.sales_report_count.

• Missing Implementation:

  • Example: Potentially needed in app/controllers/admin/audit_logs_controller.rb. Needs investigation.