The Web Application Hackers Handbook: Finding and Exploiting Security Flaws

New technologies. New attack techniques. Start hacking.

Web applications are everywhere, and they′re insecure. Banks, retailers, and others have deployed millions of applications that are full of holes, allowing attackers to steal personal data, carry out fraud, and compromise other systems. This book shows you how they do it.

This fully updated edition contains the very latest attack techniques and countermeasures, showing you how to break into today′s complex and highly functional applications. Roll up your sleeves and dig in.

Discover how cloud architectures and social networking have added exploitable attack surfaces to applications

Leverage the latest HTML features to deliver powerful cross–site scripting attacks

Deliver new injection exploits, including XML external entity and HTTP parameter pollution attacks

Learn how to break encrypted session tokens and other sensitive data found in cloud services

Discover how technologies like HTML5, REST, CSS and JSON can be exploited to attack applications and compromise users

Learn new techniques for automating attacksand dealing with CAPTCHAs and cross–site request forgery tokens

Steal sensitive data across domains using seemingly harmless application functions and new browser features

Find help and resources at http://mdsec.net/wahh

Source code for some of the scripts in the book

Links to tools and other resources

A checklist of tasks involved in most attacks

Answers to the questions posed in each chapter

Hundreds of interactive vulnerability labs

Introduction xxiii

Chapter 1 Web Application (In)security 1

Chapter 2 Core Defense Mechanisms 17

Chapter 3 Web Application Technologies 39

Chapter 4 Mapping the Application 73

Chapter 5 Bypassing Client–Side Controls 117

Chapter 6 Attacking Authentication 159

Chapter 7 Attacking Session Management 205

Chapter 8 Attacking Access Controls 257

Chapter 9 Attacking Data Stores 287

Chapter 10 Attacking Back–End Components 357

Chapter 11 Attacking Application Logic 405

Chapter 12 Attacking Users: Cross–Site Scripting 431

Chapter 13 Attacking Users: Other Techniques 501

Chapter 14 Automating Customized Attacks 571

Chapter 15 Exploiting Information Disclosure 615

Chapter 16 Attacking Native Compiled Applications 633

Chapter 17 Attacking Application Architecture 647

Chapter 18 Attacking the Application Server 669

Chapter 19 Finding Vulnerabilities in Source Code 701

Chapter 20 A Web Application Hacker s Toolkit 747

Chapter 21 A Web Application Hacker s Methodology 791

Index 853

DAFYDD STUTTARD is an independent security consultant, author, and software developer specializing in penetration testing of web applications and compiled software. Under the alias PortSwigger, Dafydd created the popular Burp Suite of hacking tools.

MARCUS PINTO delivers security consultancy and training on web application attack and defense to leading global organizations in the financial, government, telecom, gaming, and retail sectors.
The authors cofounded MDSec, a consulting company that provides training in attack and defense–based security.