Common Web Application Vulnerabilities

OWASP Top 10 Vulnerabilities

1. Injection

• Description: User input is not properly sanitized and executed as code
• Examples: SQL injection, Command injection, LDAP injection
• Prevention: Use prepared statements, input validation, parameterized queries

2. Broken Authentication

• Description: Authentication and session management flaws
• Examples: Weak passwords, session fixation, improper logout
• Prevention: Multi-factor authentication, secure session handling, password policies

3. Sensitive Data Exposure

• Description: Sensitive data not properly protected
• Examples: Unencrypted data transmission, weak encryption
• Prevention: Use TLS, encrypt sensitive data, proper key management

4. XML External Entities (XXE)

• Description: External entity references in XML processing
• Examples: Local file inclusion, server-side request forgery
• Prevention: Disable external entities, use safe XML parsers

5. Broken Access Control

• Description: Users can access unauthorized resources
• Examples: IDOR, privilege escalation, insecure direct object references
• Prevention: Implement proper authorization checks, use role-based access

6. Security Misconfiguration

• Description: Incorrect security settings and defaults
• Examples: Default passwords, unnecessary services, verbose error messages
• Prevention: Secure configuration management, regular audits

7. Cross-Site Scripting (XSS)

• Description: Malicious scripts injected into trusted websites
• Examples: Reflected XSS, Stored XSS, DOM-based XSS
• Prevention: Input validation, output encoding, Content Security Policy

8. Insecure Deserialization

• Description: Unsafe deserialization of user data
• Examples: Remote code execution, privilege escalation
• Prevention: Avoid deserialization of untrusted data, use safe formats

9. Vulnerable Components

• Description: Using components with known vulnerabilities
• Examples: Outdated libraries, unpatched software
• Prevention: Dependency scanning, regular updates, vulnerability monitoring

10. Insufficient Logging & Monitoring

• Description: Lack of proper logging and monitoring
• Examples: Undetected breaches, lack of incident response
• Prevention: Comprehensive logging, security monitoring, incident response plans

PHP-Specific Vulnerabilities

Remote File Inclusion (RFI)

• Prevention: Disable allow_url_include, validate file paths

Local File Inclusion (LFI)

• Prevention: Use whitelists, avoid user-controlled file paths

Session Hijacking

• Prevention: Use secure cookies, regenerate session IDs

Type Juggling Vulnerabilities

• Prevention: Use strict comparison operators, proper type checking

Laravel-Specific Vulnerabilities

Mass Assignment

• Prevention: Use $fillable and $guarded properties

Route Model Binding Issues

• Prevention: Implement proper authorization checks

Middleware Bypass

• Prevention: Properly configure middleware groups

Blade Template Injection

• Prevention: Avoid using unescaped output, validate user input