As web developers, the security of our client’s website or application is always the top concern, especially as those sites and applications gain popularity. Many security considerations need to be taken into account for web development. Code injection, one common front end vulnerability, is a serious security issue that MagRabbit continually safeguards against when developing client websites and applications.
Code injection is defined as the exploitation of a computer bug caused by processing invalid data. With this technique, malicious users can execute computer programs by adding code to web applications, leading to the complete host takeover, data loss or corruption or access denial. In this article, we’ll share how MagRabbit protects their client’s websites and applications from SQL injection and cross-site scripting (XSS) which are typical examples of code injection.
The SQL injection is a tactic that attackers use by testing holes in data input and error notification of the database administration system and inserting malicious SQL statements into entry fields for execution. These statements may do more than the code author intended, reading sensitive data from the database, manipulating data, executing administration operations on the database or even gleaning more information from the server until another attack avenue is discovered. Poor programming is one of the causes and the SQL injection errors occur when the application receives data from an unreliable source and the data used to construct query statements dynamically without caring about the validation. Simultaneously, attackers always make efforts to change the logic of SQL statements against the database, which seriously threatens the web applications’ security. Being aware of the risk of SQL injection, MagRabbit actively incorporates defensive solutions for our applications. Indeed, we protect SQL queries by imposing tight control over data from requests and separating the data from the command language through parameterized queries. Additionally, limiting data processing authorization of user accounts and hiding infrastructure details in error notifications are also essential tools that deter malicious users from accessing the database.
Cross-site scripting is also a common web application vulnerability. With this technique, attackers can insert malicious scripts into the web and manipulate under the accessing control of a certain user. Hackers can send the scripts to any user and then that user’s browser will process the scripts to return individual information of the user to hackers. It is not the website but users that are victims of such situations as their credential information is stolen and their accounts are controlled by the malicious user. Though it is not easy to detect this vulnerability, there are still protective measures developers can take to maintain application security. MagRabbit recommends that we should not rely on user-supplied data but must be careful with input validation. In addition, we always remind ourselves to encode display data in order to prevent the browser from executing malicious data.
In a nutshell, MagRabbit is enhancing application security by minimizing holes in development and having its own solutions to application risks. If your business needs a secure web or mobile application development, please contact us at info@magrabbit.com or +1 (512) 310-9903.
