There may be times you want to insert a value into JavaScript to process in your view. You must regularly patch DOMPurify or other HTML Sanitization libraries that you use. This cushions your application against an XSS attack, and at times, you may be able to prevent it, as well. Based on this context, you need to refine your input to see how it is processed. Use only safe functions like document.innerText and document.textContent. If data is read from a user-controlled source like the URL, then passed to the attr() function, then it may be possible to manipulate the value sent to cause XSS. Except for alphanumeric characters, encode all characters with the HTML Entity, Except for alphanumeric characters, encode all characters with the, Out of date framework plugins or components, Where URLs are handled in code such as this CSS { background-url : javascript:alert(xss); }. To signify that the data was securely processed, create a special object - a Trusted Type.DoanElement.innerHTML = aTrustedHTML; With Trusted Types enabled, the browser accepts a TrustedHTML object for sinks that expect HTML snippets. No single technique will solve XSS. This video shows the lab solution of "DOM-based cross-site scripting" from WebGoat 7. Dangerous attributes include any attribute that is a command execution context, such as onclick or onblur. Trusted Types work by locking down the following risky sink functions. Frameworks make it easy to ensure variables are correctly validated and escaped or sanitised. If that isn't enough to keep in mind, you have to remember that encodings are lost when you retrieve them using the value attribute of a DOM element. Encode all characters using the \xHH format. How to detect DOM-based cross-site scripting? DOM-based XSS Examples. Working example (no HTML encoding): Normally encoded example (Does Not Work DNW): HTML encoded example to highlight a fundamental difference with JavaScript encoded values (DNW): If HTML encoding followed the same semantics as JavaScript encoding. You can also debug the violations in the browser: Add the following HTTP Response header to documents that you want to migrate to Trusted Types. It's important to remember that some of these are also potential sources and sinks for DOM XSS. For example: Modern web applications are typically built using a number of third-party libraries and frameworks, which often provide additional functions and capabilities for developers. Cross Site Scripting Prevention Cheat Sheet - github.com A list of output encoding libraries is included in the appendix. There will be situations where you use a URL in different contexts. DOM-based XSS: DOM-based XSS occurs when an . The safest way to insert values is to place the value in a data attribute of a tag and retrieve it in your JavaScript. In order to mitigate against the CSS url() method, ensure that you are URL encoding the data passed to the CSS url() method. . A list of safe HTML attributes is provided in the Safe Sinks section. You need to work through each available source in turn, and test each one individually. Output encoding is the primary defense against cross-site scripting vulnerabilities. Before putting untrusted data into JavaScript place the data in an HTML element whose contents you retrieve at runtime. Other JavaScript methods which take code as a string types will have a similar problem as outline above (setTimeout, setInterval, new Function, etc.). //The following does NOT work because of the encoded "(" and ")". Copyright 2021 - CheatSheets Series Team - This work is licensed under a, "<%=ESAPI.encoder().encodeForJavascript(ESAPI.encoder().encodeForHTML(untrustedData))%>", // In the following line of code, companyName represents untrusted user input, // The ESAPI.encoder().encodeForHTMLAttribute() is unnecessary and causes double-encoding, '<%=ESAPI.encoder().encodeForJavascript(ESAPI.encoder().encodeForHTMLAttribute(companyName))%>', '<%=ESAPI.encoder().encodeForJavascript(companyName)%>', // In the line of code below, the encoded data on the right (the second argument to setAttribute). Input validation. Trusted Types give you the tools to write, security review, and maintain applications free of DOM XSS vulnerabilities by making the dangerous web API functions secure by default. In order to understand DOM based XSS, one needs to see the fundamental difference between Reflected and Stored XSS when compared to DOM based XSS. An attacker can execute a DOM-based cross-site scripting attack if the web application writes user-supplied information directly to the Document Object Model (DOM) and there is no sanitization. Examples of some JavaScript sandbox / sanitizers: Don't eval() JSON to convert it to native JavaScript objects. We want to help you build beautiful, accessible, fast, and secure websites that work cross-browser, and for all of your users. Cross Site Scripting Prevention Cheat Sheet - OWASP Web Application Firewalls - These look for known attack strings and block them. A Computer Science portal for geeks. In many cases, JavaScript encoding does not stop attacks within an execution context. It simplifies security reviews, and allows you to enforce the type-based security checks done when compiling, linting, or bundling your code at runtime, in the browser. For each potential source, such as location, you first need to find cases within the page's JavaScript code where the source is being referenced. Before putting untrusted data inside an HTML element ensure it's HTML encoded. Record your progression from Apprentice to Expert. -->, "javascript:myFunction('<%=ESAPI.encoder().encodeForJavascript(untrustedData)%>', 'test');", "<%=ESAPI.encoder().encodeForHTML(last_name)%>", //when the value is retrieved the encoding is reversed. Therefore, the primary recommendation is to avoid including untrusted data in this context. DOM-based XSS is a type of cross-site scripting attack that takes advantage of vulnerabilities in the Document Object Model (DOM) of a web page. What is DOM-based cross-site scripting? - PortSwigger In those cases, create a Trusted Type object yourself. Automatic encoding and escaping functions are built into most frameworks. Some papers or guides advocate its use as an alternative to innerHTML to mitigate against XSS in innerHTML. For more information on other types of XSS attacks: reflected XSS and stored XSS, see the following article: Types of XSS: Stored XSS, Reflected XSS, and DOM-based XSS. Now all the violations are reported to //my-csp-endpoint.example, but the website continues to work. //The following DOES WORK because the encoded value is a valid variable name or function reference. To prevent DOM-based cross-site scripting, sanitize all untrusted data, even if it is only used in client-side scripts. DOM-based XSS vulnerabilities usually arise when JavaScript takes data from an attacker-controllable source, such as the URL, and passes it to a sink that supports dynamic code execution, such as eval() or innerHTML. In certain circumstances, such as when targeting a 404 page or a website running PHP, the payload can also be placed in the path. Get the latest content on web security in your inbox each week. Enhance security monitoring to comply with confidence. Please note, it is always dangerous design to put untrusted data directly into a command execution context. There are a variety of sinks that are relevant to DOM-based vulnerabilities. However the opposite is the case with HTML encoding. It is the process of converting untrusted . A stored XSS attack enables an attacker to embed a malicious script into a vulnerable page, which is then executed when a victim views the page. Dangerous contexts include: Don't place variables into dangerous contexts as even with output encoding, it will not prevent an XSS attack fully. How DOM Based XSS Attacks work - Bright Security In a reflected DOM XSS vulnerability, the server processes data from the request, and echoes the data into the response. One of the simplest ways of doing this is to deliver your exploit via an iframe: In this example, the src attribute points to the vulnerable page with an empty hash value. This information should help you narrow down which parts of code may be introducing DOM XSS and need to change.Most of the violations like this can also be detected by running a code linter or static code checkers on your codebase. Variables should only be placed in a CSS property value. Information on ordering, pricing, and more. Use one of the following approaches to prevent code from being exposed to DOM-based XSS: The HTML, JavaScript and URL encoders are available to your code in two ways, you can inject them via dependency injection or you can use the default encoders contained in the System.Text.Encodings.Web namespace. This is in stark contrast to JavaScript encoding in the event handler attribute of a HTML tag (HTML parser) where JavaScript encoding mitigates against XSS. If you're using JavaScript for writing to HTML, look at the .textContent attribute as it is a Safe Sink and will automatically HTML Entity Encode. How To Prevent DOM-based Cross-site Scripting - emtmeta.com Java Encoder is an active project providing supports for HTML, CSS and JavaScript encoding. Practise exploiting vulnerabilities on realistic targets. Rather, a malicious change in the DOM environment causes client code to run unexpectedly. Upgrade to Microsoft Edge to take advantage of the latest features, security updates, and technical support. Any application is vulnerable to DOM-based cross-site scripting if there is an executable path via which data can develop from source to sink. Avoid treating untrusted data as code or markup within JavaScript code. DOM-based cross-site scripting is a type of cross-site scripting (XSS) attack executed within the Document Object Model (DOM) of a page loaded into the browser. (It's free!). Stored XSS is considered the most damaging type of XSS attack. Your application can be vulnerable to both reflected/stored XSS and DOM XSS. This brings up an interesting design point. At a basic level XSS works by tricking your application into inserting a