Insecure Deserialization Definition:
Insecure Deserialization is a Vulnerability that occurs when untrusted or malicious data is deserialized by an application, potentially resulting in code execution, data manipulation, or other unintended behaviour. This security flaw arises when deserialized data is not properly validated or sanitised, allowing attackers to craft malicious payloads.
What is Insecure Deserialization?
Serialization is the process of converting an object or data structure into a format that can be stored or transmitted, and deserialization is the reverse process of reconstructing that data. Insecure Deserialization happens when an application processes untrusted data without adequate checks, allowing attackers to manipulate or create objects that alter the programme’s behaviour or execute harmful code.
Why is Insecure Deserialization important?
The purpose of Exploiting Insecure Deserialization is to compromise the security of an application or system. Attackers may use this Vulnerability to escalate privileges, execute arbitrary code, bypass security mechanisms, or tamper with data. Because serialization and deserialization are commonly used in applications, ensuring their security is critical.
How does Insecure Deserialization work?
Insecure Deserialization attacks typically involve sending specially crafted data to an application that uses deserialization without proper validation. When the application deserialises this data, the attacker’s payload is executed or the object’s behaviour is manipulated. Defending against this Vulnerability involves validating and sanitising input, avoiding deserialization of untrusted data, and using safer serialization libraries with built-in security features.
Insecure Deserialization Examples:
Examples of Insecure Deserialization include an attacker sending a modified serialised object to an application that results in code execution or Privilege Escalation, or modifying a serialised session object to alter user permissions. Java and PHP applications have historically been vulnerable to such attacks due to the use of certain object deserialization libraries.
Insecure Deserialization Issues:
Insecure Deserialization is challenging to detect because it often involves complex object structures and application logic. To mitigate this risk, developers should avoid deserialising untrusted data, implement strict input validation, use secure serialisation libraries, and monitor for unusual deserialization behaviour in logs and application activity.
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