mitigations.md

Mitigation Strategies Analysis for scalessec/toast-swift

Mitigation Strategy: Implement Toast Rate Limiting and Queuing within toast-swift Usage

• Description:

  1. Leverage application logic to control the frequency of calls to toast-swift display functions. Instead of directly calling Toast.show() every time a notification is needed, introduce a controlling layer.
  2. Implement rate limiting before invoking toast-swift. This can be done by:
     • Using a timer or timestamp to track the last toast display time. Only allow a new toast to be displayed if a certain time interval has passed since the last one.
     • Counting the number of toast requests within a specific time window and rejecting new requests if a threshold is reached.
  3. Implement a toast queue before invoking toast-swift. When a toast needs to be displayed, add it to a queue. A separate process or timer can then dequeue and display toasts using toast-swift at a controlled pace.
  4. Configure toast-swift's display duration appropriately. Use the library's options to set a reasonable duration for toasts to automatically dismiss. Avoid relying on persistent toasts unless absolutely necessary and carefully managed.
  5. Test the rate limiting and queuing mechanisms in conjunction with toast-swift under various load conditions. Ensure that the application logic effectively controls the toast display rate and prevents excessive toast generation when using toast-swift.

• Threats Mitigated:

  • UI Obscuring: (Severity: Medium) - Prevents excessive toasts, triggered through application logic flaws or malicious input, from obscuring important UI elements when using toast-swift.
  • UI-level Denial of Service (DoS) via Toast Overload: (Severity: Low) - Reduces the risk of overwhelming the UI with toasts by controlling the rate at which toast-swift is invoked, mitigating potential DoS scenarios related to toast spam.

• Impact:

  • UI Obscuring: High - Effectively prevents UI obscuring caused by uncontrolled toast-swift usage.
  • UI-level Denial of Service (DoS) via Toast Overload: Medium - Significantly reduces the likelihood of UI-level DoS attacks related to abusing toast-swift to flood the UI with notifications.

• Currently Implemented:

  • Basic toast-swift display duration configuration is likely used in [Toast Utility Class/Base View Controller] by setting the duration parameter when calling Toast.show().
  • Implicit rate limiting might exist due to the natural flow of application events that trigger toast-swift in [Specific Modules], but no explicit control is in place for toast-swift usage.

• Missing Implementation:

  • Explicit rate limiting logic before calling toast-swift display functions is missing in [Toast Manager/Utility Class/Application Logic Layer].
  • Toast queuing mechanism before invoking toast-swift is not implemented in [Toast Manager/Utility Class/Application Logic Layer].
  • No dedicated component or module exists to specifically manage and control the rate and queue of toast-swift displays.
  • Stress testing focused on toast-swift rate limiting and queuing is not part of the regular testing process.

Mitigation Strategy: Restrict toast-swift Interactivity and Maintain Default Non-Interactive Usage

• Description:

  1. Utilize toast-swift in its default, non-interactive configuration. Avoid modifying or extending toast-swift to add interactive elements (buttons, links, input fields) directly within the toast view.
  2. If custom views are used with toast-swift, ensure they remain non-interactive. When using toast-swift's ability to display custom views, carefully design these views to be purely for display purposes and avoid embedding interactive controls within them.
  3. Maintain clear visual distinction between toast-swift notifications and interactive UI elements in the application. Ensure that the visual style of toasts, as rendered by toast-swift, is distinct from buttons, links, and other interactive components to prevent user confusion. This is achieved through consistent UI design and styling around the use of toast-swift.
  4. Avoid making toast-swift notifications persistent or requiring manual dismissal unless absolutely necessary. Stick to the transient nature of toasts as intended by toast-swift's design. If persistence is needed, consider alternative UI elements outside of toast-swift.
  5. During code reviews, specifically verify that toast-swift is used in a non-interactive manner and that no accidental interactivity is introduced through custom views or configurations.

• Threats Mitigated:

  • Clickjacking/UI Redressing (related to potential misuse of toast-swift): (Severity: Low) - By ensuring toast-swift remains non-interactive, this strategy mitigates the already low risk of clickjacking or UI redressing attacks that could theoretically arise if toast-swift were modified to include interactive elements.

• Impact:

  • Clickjacking/UI Redressing (related to potential misuse of toast-swift): Low - Further reduces the already low probability of clickjacking or UI redressing risks specifically related to how toast-swift is used.

• Currently Implemented:

  • toast-swift is currently used in its default non-interactive mode throughout [Project Name]. Standard usage patterns are followed in [Toast Utility Class/Base View Controller].
  • Visual distinction between toasts and interactive elements is generally maintained by the existing UI style guidelines in [UI Style Guide/Design System], which implicitly affects how toast-swift is presented.

• Missing Implementation:

  • Explicit code review guidelines to specifically check for non-interactive usage of toast-swift and custom views within toasts.
  • No automated checks or linters to enforce non-interactivity in toast-swift usage or custom toast views.
  • Developer documentation could be enhanced to explicitly emphasize the importance of using toast-swift non-interactively from a security perspective.