Business Logic / Defenses against Application Misuse

Description

Defenses Against Application Misuse (CWE-745) is a vulnerability related to web and API applications. It occurs when the application does not provide adequate defenses against attackers who attempt to misuse the application by bypassing security controls and attempting to use the application in unintended ways. The Common Weakness Enumeration (CWE) directory classifies this vulnerability as an Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') vulnerability. Furthermore, the OWASP Testing Guide provides test cases to identify application misuse, such as authentication and authorization bypasses, information disclosure, and data manipulation.

Risk

The risk associated with this vulnerability is that an attacker can gain access to sensitive information and manipulate data. This can lead to data leaks, financial losses, and reputational damage. A risk assessment should be conducted to identify the potential impact of such an attack.

Solution

The solution is to ensure that the application is properly configured to prevent attackers from bypassing security controls and using the application in unintended ways. This can be achieved by using secure coding practices, such as input validation, authentication and authorization, and encryption. Additionally, the application should be tested regularly to identify any vulnerabilities and ensure that all security controls are properly implemented.

Example

The following example shows an application that is vulnerable to CWE-745.

if (request.getParameter("action") != null) {
  String action = request.getParameter("action");
  if (action.equals("delete")) {
    // delete the specified file
    File file = new File(request.getParameter("filename"));
    file.delete();
  }
}

In this example, the application does not properly check the filename parameter for malicious input. An attacker can use the 'action' parameter to delete arbitrary files on the server, allowing them to gain access to sensitive information or manipulate data.