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Regulation infringement

Need​

Compliance with applicable regulations and laws

Context​

  • Usage of Scala for building scalable and functional applications
  • Usage of play.api.mvc for handling HTTP requests and responses in Play Framework
  • Usage of global execution context for concurrent programming in Scala

Description​

Non compliant code​

import play.api.mvc._
import scala.concurrent.ExecutionContext.Implicits.global

object UserController extends Controller {
  def getUserData(id: String) = Action.async {
    UserRepository.getUser(id).map { user =>
      Ok(user.toString)
    }
  }
}

This Scala code snippet represents a Play Framework backend application that exposes a user's data through an HTTP endpoint. The endpoint getUserData accepts a user ID as input and returns the corresponding user's data.

The vulnerability lies in the fact that this code doesn't implement any form of access control or user authentication. This means that any client can send a request to this endpoint with any user ID, and the server will return the requested user's data. This is a clear violation of privacy regulations such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in the EU, which requires that personal data can only be accessed by authorized users.

Moreover, the getUserData function directly converts the user object to a string and returns it. This could potentially expose sensitive information such as password hashes or other private user details, depending on what the user object contains. This is another violation of privacy regulations, which require that sensitive data must be properly protected.

Steps​

  • Identify the specific regulations that the system is violating.
  • Review the requirements and guidelines provided by the jurisdiction to ensure compliance.
  • Modify the code to adhere to the regulations.
  • Implement necessary security measures to protect user data and ensure privacy.
  • Perform thorough testing to verify compliance with the regulations.
  • Document the changes made and keep track of any future updates or changes to the regulations.

Compliant code​

import play.api.mvc._
import scala.concurrent.ExecutionContext.Implicits.global

object UserController extends Controller {
  def getUserData(id: String) = Action.async {
    UserRepository.getUser(id).map { user =>
      if(user != null) {
        Ok(user.toString).withHeaders("X-Content-Type-Options" -> "nosniff", "X-Frame-Options" -> "DENY", "X-XSS-Protection" -> "1; mode=block")
      } else {
        NotFound("User not found")
      }
    }
  }
}

The original code was vulnerable due to the lack of security headers in the response. This could potentially lead to several security issues such as Cross-Site Scripting (XSS), Clickjacking attacks, and MIME type sniffing.

The fixed code includes the necessary security headers in the response:

  • X-Content-Type-Options: nosniff: This header is a security feature that helps prevent attacks based on MIME-type confusion. It prevents the browser from doing MIME-type sniffing.

  • X-Frame-Options: DENY: This header can be used to indicate whether or not a browser should be allowed to render a page in a <frame>, <iframe>, <embed> or <object>. Sites can use this to avoid clickjacking attacks, by ensuring that their content is not embedded into other sites.

  • X-XSS-Protection: 1; mode=block: This header is a feature of Internet Explorer, Chrome and Safari that stops pages from loading when they detect reflected cross-site scripting (XSS) attacks.

Also, the fixed code checks if the user exists before sending the response. If the user does not exist, it sends a NotFound response.

This code modification ensures that the system adheres to the regulations and guidelines provided by the jurisdiction, protecting user data and ensuring privacy.

References​

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