Improving Web Application Security: Threats and - CGISecurity

Chapter 5: Architecture and Design Review for Security 115Do You Secure Configuration Stores?Identify the configuration stores of your application and then examine your approachto restricting access to the stores and securing the data inside the stores.●●●Is your configuration store in the Web space?Configuration data that is held in files in the Web space is considered less securethan data that is held outside the Web space. Host configuration mistakes orundiscovered bugs could potentially allow an attacker to retrieve and downloadconfiguration files over HTTP.Is the data in the configuration store secure?Make sure that key items of configuration data, such as database connectionstrings, encryption keys, and service account credentials, are encrypted inside thestore.How is access to the configuration store restricted?Check that the administration interface provides the necessary authorization toensure that only authenticated administrators can access and manipulate the data.Do You Separate Administrator Privileges?If your administration interfaces support different functionalities — for example, sitecontent updates, service account reconfiguration, and database connection details —verify that your administration interfaces support role-based authorization todifferentiate between content developers and operators or system administrators. Forexample, the person who updates static Web site content should not necessarily beallowed to alter the credit limit of a customer or reconfigure a database connectionstring.Sensitive DataExamine how your application handles sensitive data in store, in applicationmemory, and while in transit across the network. Table 5.5 shows the most commonvulnerabilities that are associated with handling sensitive data.Table 5.5 Common Vulnerabilities with Handling Sensitive DataVulnerabilityStoring secrets when you do notneed toImplicationsThis drastically increases the security risk as opposed to notstoring the secret in the first place.Storing secrets in codeStoring secrets in clear textPassing sensitive data in cleartext over networksIf the code is on the server, an attacker might be able todownload it. Secrets are visible in binary assemblies.Anyone who can log on to the server can see secret data.Eavesdroppers can monitor the network to reveal and tamperwith the data.