Web Application Penetration Testing: Top 10 Vulnerabilities

Companies are continually seeking innovative ways to safeguard their web apps due to rising cyber threats. Web application penetration testing is one of these strategies, and it is now an integral component of any effective security plan.

Penetration testing, also known as Pen Test or Pen Testing, is becoming increasingly popular. According to reports, the pen testing industry is predicted to grow from $1.7 billion in 2020 to $4.5 billion by 2025. In this blog, we’ll discuss the top vulnerabilities in web applications and web app pentesting helps to mitigate them. But first, let’s start from the basics of web app pentesting.

Web Application Vulnerabilities: A Brief Overview

Any application defect an attacker can exploit to compromise a web application is called a web application vulnerability. Web applications are becoming increasingly significant in both business and personal life—exploiting a web application vulnerability testing can result in the loss of sensitive data, disruption of corporate operations, reputational harm, and legal exposure.

Continuous security testing is essential for identifying security flaws and protecting your firm. To address web application security vulnerabilities, a proactive strategy is required, including frequent security audits, code reviews, and safe development techniques and frameworks. Furthermore, using techniques such as firewalls and constantly upgrading software helps improve overall web application security.

Common Web App Vulnerabilities: The Top 10

Below are the most prevalent security concerns listed in Web application vulnerabilities OWASP Top 10. Developers may construct secure apps that protect their users’ data from attackers by creating code and performing rigorous testing with these concerns in mind.

1. SQL Injection

Many applications utilize Structured Query Language (SQL) to manage database connectivity. Furthermore, SQL flaws allow attackers to input malicious SQL statements into databases to exfiltrate, change, or destroy data. Some hackers use it to get root access to the target application. SQL injection attacks are directed at servers that store sensitive data utilized by web applications or services. They are especially harmful when exposed to vital or sensitive data, such as user passwords and personal information. Using unsensitized user inputs is the most prevalent vulnerability that allows SQL injection attacks. Removing any element in user-supplied inputs that the server may utilize to run SQL code is critical.

2. Access Control Failure

If authentication and access control are not correctly established, attackers can easily grab everything they want. Unauthenticated or unauthorized users may get access to sensitive information and applications, as well as user privilege settings, due to access control weaknesses. Penetration testing can detect missing authentication but not the misconfigurations that result in the vulnerability. One advantage of the growing usage of Infrastructure as Code (IaC) technologies is the ability to discover configuration mistakes that lead to access control failures using scanning tools. Weak access controls and credential management difficulties in apps may be avoided using safe coding techniques and preventative actions such as shutting down administrative accounts and controls and employing multi-factor authentication.

3. Misconfiguration of Security

Application servers, frameworks, and cloud infrastructure are all highly customizable, and security flaws such as overly wide permissions, insecure default values left unmodified, or overly revealing error messages can give attackers simple routes to compromise programs. A 2023 report identified misconfiguration mistakes in 70% or more of apps that had created a new vulnerability in the previous year. Organizations should harden deployed application and infrastructure configurations regularly and scan all infrastructure as code components as part of a secure SDLC to prevent misconfiguration risks.

4. Failures in Security Logging and Monitoring

Adequate logging and monitoring are critical in discovering a breach early and, ideally, reducing the damage, and in incident forensics, to understand the breadth of the breach and the type of attack. More than simply producing data is required; enterprises must also have effective data collecting, storage, alerting, and escalation mechanisms. Organizations should also ensure that these procedures function properly; for example, employing Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) solutions should result in considerable logging and alerting events.

5. Fixation on a Session

A session fixation attack includes changing a user’s session ID to a certain value. Furthermore, depending on the target web application’s functionality, attackers may employ various approaches to modify session ID values. Two examples of session fixation tactics are cross-site scripting attacks and reusing HTTP requests. Without sufficient safeguards, every web application that authenticates users using sessions is subject to session fixation attacks. Web apps commonly use session IDs, although hidden form fields or URLs may also use them. The most common and easiest to hack are cookie-based user sessions. The majority of fixation attacks are directed at cookie-based sessions.

6. Outdated and Vulnerable Components

In recent years, supply chain vulnerabilities have become a serious problem, particularly when threat actors seek to incorporate malicious or susceptible code into widely used libraries and third-party dependencies. An organization may be exploited if it lacks insight into the external code utilized within its applications, including nested dependencies, and fails to examine it for dependencies. In addition, failing to deploy security updates to these dependencies on time may expose exploitable vulnerabilities to attack. A program, for example, may import a third-party library with its dependencies that may include known exploitable flaws.

7. Failures in Software and Data Integrity

The tools used to create, manage, and distribute software are becoming more prevalent attack vectors. A CI’CD pipeline that regularly builds, tests, and deploys software may also be leveraged to insert malicious code (or libraries), produce unsafe deployments, or steal secrets. As described above, modern applications rely heavily on third-party components frequently retrieved from third-party repositories. Organizations may reduce this risk by guaranteeing the security of both the build process and the components used. Malicious code or libraries can be identified by including code scanning and software component analysis stages in a software build pipeline.

7. Failures in Identification and Authentication

Malicious actors can impersonate other users thanks to ineffective identity management and authentication mechanisms. Hackers who exploit these flaws obtain access to sensitive data such as bank information or intellectual property. Application multi-factor authentication and effective identity and access management (IAM) procedures can help prevent vulnerabilities in this category. A crucial security practice is identifying and approving users and clients. Flaws in how an application enables access or recognizes users are serious vulnerabilities. While secure coding methods are the foundation of mitigation, technologies to identify and prevent credential stuffing and brute force attacks are also essential safeguards.

8. SSRF- Server-Side Request Forgery

Modern web apps frequently retrieve additional material or data from a remote resource. If an attacker has control over the destination resource and the application does not check the provided URL, a forged request may be delivered to the target location. Mitigating SSRF attacks involves:

• Adopting well-known techniques such as sanitizing user input.
•  Employing explicit allow lists.
•  Analyzing request replies before returning them to clients.
•  

9. Cryptographic Flaws

The category of cryptographic failures was known as “sensitive data exposure” in the 2017 OWASP Top 10 Vulnerabilities. Because cryptography is employed to secure data resources, the new category name better represents the variety of issues. Weak SSL/TLS implementations, insecure password storage, and outdated and compromised encryption technologies are among the difficulties. Among the mitigation strategies are better encryption protocols and regular vulnerability evaluations. Older encryption applications should be phased out in favor of more modern ones.

Read More : Web Application Penetration Testing: A Comprehensive Guide

Web Application Penetration Testing: A Closer Look

A pen test, as the name implies, is a test that focuses primarily on a web application rather than a network or corporation as a whole. web application penetration testing is performed by launching simulated assaults, both within and outside, to get access to sensitive data.

We may use web application security testing to identify any security flaws in the complete web application and its components (including the source code, database, and back-end network). Furthermore, this allows the developer to prioritize the identified web app vulnerabilities and threats and devise mitigation techniques.

Is your business facing any of the vulnerabilities and seeking expert help? Don’t worry, Qualysec is here to help. Contact our expert Security Consultants to help you secure your applications!