The 5 most dangerous web application vulnerabilities and how to find them

Software as a Service (SaaS) applications are a vital element of many organizations. Web-based software has significantly improved the way businesses operate and deliver services in various departments such as education, IT, finance, media and healthcare.

Cybercriminals are always looking for creative ways to exploit weaknesses in web applications. The reasons behind their motives can vary from financial gain to personal vendetta or political agenda, but all pose significant risk to your organization. So what vulnerabilities can exist in web applications? How to spot them? The answer will be in the following article!

The 5 most dangerous web application vulnerabilities

1. SQL injection

SQL injection is a common attack in which malicious SQL statements or queries are executed on an SQL database server running behind a web application.

By exploiting vulnerabilities in SQL, attackers have the ability to bypass security configurations such as authentication and authorization, and gain access to SQL databases that hold sensitive data records. feelings of different companies. Once this access is gained, the attacker can manipulate the data by adding, modifying, or deleting records.

To keep your database safe from SQL injection attacks, it is important to implement input validation and use parameterized queries or prepared statements in your code. application. This way, user input is properly sanitized and any potentially malicious elements are removed.

2. XSS

Also known as Cross Site Scripting, XSS is a web security weakness that allows attackers to inject malicious code into a trusted website or application. This occurs when a web application does not properly validate user input before use.

An attacker can control the victim's interactions with the software after successfully injecting and executing the code.

3. Incorrect security configuration

Security configuration is the implementation of security settings that are faulty or in some way error-prone. Due to improperly configured settings, this leaves a security vulnerability in the application, allowing attackers to steal information or launch cyberattacks to achieve their motives, such as preventing the application becomes active and causes long (and expensive) downtime.

Security misconfigurations can include open ports, using weak passwords, and sending unencrypted data.

4. Access control

Access control plays a critical role in keeping applications secure from unauthorized entities that do not have access to critical data. If access control features are broken, this can cause data to be compromised.

A broken authentication vulnerability allows an attacker to steal an authorized user's password, key, token, or other sensitive information to gain unauthorized access to data.

To avoid this, you should implement the use of multi-factor authentication (MFA) and create strong passwords and keep them safe.

5. Encoding error

Encryption errors can cause sensitive data to be exposed, granting access to an entity that otherwise cannot be viewed. This happens due to a poor implementation of the encryption mechanism or simply a lack of encryption features.

To avoid encoding errors, it is important to classify the data that a web application processes, stores, and sends. By identifying sensitive data assets, you can ensure that they are protected with encryption both when they are not in use and when in transit.

Invest in a good encryption solution that uses strong and up-to-date algorithms, centralizes and manages encryption keys, and takes care of the key lifecycle.

How to find web vulnerabilities?

There are two main ways you can perform web security testing of applications. The article recommends that you use both methods in parallel to enhance your network security.

Use web scanning tools to find vulnerabilities

Vulnerability scanners are tools that automatically identify potential weaknesses in web applications and their underlying infrastructure. These scanning tools are useful because they are capable of finding a variety of issues and can be run at any time, making them a valuable addition to your regular security testing routine. software development program.

There are many different tools available to detect SQL injection (SQLi) attacks, including open source options that can be found on GitHub. Some widely used tools for SQLi search are NetSpark, SQLMAP, and Burp Suite.

Besides, Invicti, Acunetix, Veracode, and Checkmarx are powerful tools that can scan entire websites or applications to detect potential security issues like XSS. Using these, you can easily and quickly find obvious vulnerabilities.

Netsparker is another effective scanner that offers OWASP Top 10 protection, database security testing, and content detection. You can find security misconfigurations that pose a threat using Qualys Web Application Scanner.

Of course, several web scrapers can help you discover issues in web applications - all you need to do is research different scrapers to find the one that's best for you and your company. your.

Penetration testing

Penetration testing is another method you can use to find vulnerabilities in web applications. This test involves a simulated attack on a computer system to evaluate its security.

During pentesting, security experts use the same methods and tools as hackers to identify and demonstrate the potential impact of vulnerabilities. Web applications are developed with the aim of eliminating security vulnerabilities; With penetration testing, you can find out the effectiveness of these efforts.

Pentest helps organizations identify application vulnerabilities, evaluate the strength of security controls, meet regulatory requirements such as PCI DSS, HIPAA and GDPR, and paint a picture of the situation current security so that the management department can allocate budget when needed.

Micah Soto

Update 15 October 2023