Web Security: Sessions and Cookies

The inability of a server to remember past interactions with a client. Each request is treated independently, without any knowledge of previous requests.

A mechanism to keep track of user-specific information during a web session. It allows a server to maintain state even though HTTP is stateless.

A sequence of requests and responses between a client and a server that represents a single interaction, often associated with a user being logged into a website.

A harmful technique that allows attackers to inject malicious scripts into a website, potentially stealing user data or causing other damage.

A technique used to mitigate the risk of Cross-Site Scripting attacks by filtering user inputs for potentially harmful characters or code.

A type of defense against Cross-Site Scripting attacks that aims to limit the impact of a successful attack by restricting the actions the attacker can perform.

A session in web applications is a mechanism to keep track of the communication between a client (user's browser) and the server. It stores information about the user's activity and preferences during a single browsing session.

A session is like a shared context. It keeps track of all the interactions between you (the client) and the server, allowing the server to remember things about you during your visit.

A session is essential in web applications because it allows the server to maintain information about individual users' actions, preferences, or even authentication details.

A session is created when a user starts interacting with a web application. It allows the server to track various activities and preferences, creating a personalized browsing experience for each user.

A session is used to keep track of information about a user's actions on a website, such as items added to a shopping cart or authentication details.

Sessions can be a simple key-value store or an object model that stores information about a user's session, allowing the server to remember details about individual users.

Sessions are temporary, meaning they are only valid for a certain period of time, typically until the user closes their browser or after a specified session timeout.

Sessions are generally implemented using server-side mechanisms like databases or in-memory data structures, allowing the server to manage session data efficiently and securely.

A security mechanism that allows servers to control which sources of content a web browser can load, improving security by preventing malicious scripts from executing.

An attack where a malicious user tricks a user into clicking a link that executes a malicious action on the victim's behalf. This exploit doesn't require JavaScript like XSS. It uses predictable URLs to exploit cookie authentication. This is often used to trigger unauthorized bank transfers, for example.

A malicious user might craft a link mimicking a familiar website or service, hoping unsuspecting users will click it. This link can lead to unexpected consequences for the victim's online accounts or other sites they are logged into, as the user's cookies are automatically sent with the request.

A web application should avoid using easily guessable URLs, especially for sensitive tasks. Instead, use more complex and unpredictable URLs or methods that don't rely on GET requests.

Websites using cookie-based authentication are particularly vulnerable to CSRF attacks because attackers can exploit cookies to execute requests with the victim's privileges. These attacks are often targeted towards sensitive actions like bank transfers, login attempts, or authorization changes.

A unique, server-generated token included in web forms. The server verifies the token on subsequent requests to prevent CSRF attacks.

Web browser setting that restricts cookies to prevent malicious cross-site requests.

A security mechanism that uses custom headers in AJAX requests, verified by the server, to protect against CSRF attacks.

Someone who listens secretly to network communications, potentially stealing confidential data.

Someone who intercepts communications and alters data passing between the user and the server, potentially stealing information.

An attacker who creates a fake website to trick users into providing authentication credentials, gaining confidential access.

A secure communication protocol that encrypts and authenticates all data transfer between a user and a server.

A malicious URL designed to exploit CSRF vulnerabilities. It's often disguised as a link within an image or social media post, luring users to click it unknowingly.

The attacker's website or server that hosts the malicious request, redirecting unsuspecting users to the target website.

A trusted website, like an online bank, becomes the target of a CSRF attack. The attacker aims to exploit vulnerabilities on this website to hijack user accounts.

The process of sending a malicious request to a web server, aiming to execute unauthorized actions within a user's session on the target website.

The user's active session, containing their credentials and permissions on the target website. Attackers exploit this session to execute actions in their name without their awareness.

The process of receiving a malicious request from the attacker's server, potentially causing unauthorized actions within a user's session.

The attacker exploits the target website's vulnerabilities to gain access to the user's session and execute commands in their name, without their knowledge.

The malicious command sent from the attacker's server to the target website, causing unauthorized actions within the user's session.

The victim's account details, like their username and password, used by attackers to exploit CSRF vulnerabilities.

Unauthorized actions performed on behalf of the user, like funds transfers, changing account settings, or sending messages. These actions are initiated by exploitng the CSRF vulnerability without user knowledge.

Implementing measures to prevent CSRF attacks, including using unique request tokens, verifying origin of Requests, and encoding user-sensitive data.

Preventing CSRF attacks by ensuring that HTTP requests originate from a trusted domain or app, and only allow requests from intended sources.

Using unique tokens to validate user actions and prevent CSRF attacks. This is often achieved by including a random token in every form submission, which must match a token generated on the server side.

The process of encoding user-sensitive data in web forms, making it less vulnerable to manipulation by attackers. This helps prevent injection attacks and CSRF vulnerabilities.