🧞API Security Cheat Sheet PART - 4

Diverse Authentication Techniques and Their Security Implications

1. Unicode Escape Sequence

   {"login": "\u0041\u0044\u004D\u0049\u004E",
    "password": "\u0050\u0041\u0053\u0053\u0057\u004F\u0052\u0044"}

   Description: Features Unicode escape sequences, emphasizing the need for APIs to correctly interpret and handle Unicode.

2. Value as Object Instead of String

   {"login": {"$oid": "507c7f79bcf86cd7994f6c0e"},
    "password": "password"}

   Description: Demonstrates the use of an object as a value, underscoring the importance of validating value types in credentials.

3. Nonexistent Variables as Values

   {"login": undefined,
    "password": undefined}

   Description: Utilizes undefined variables, highlighting the necessity to handle unassigned or null values correctly.

4. Extra Nested Objects

   {"login": "admin",
    "password": "password",
    "extra": {"key1": "value1", "key2": "value2"}}

   Description: Contains additional nested objects, pointing out the need to manage unexpected or extraneous data structures.

5. Hexadecimal Values

   {"login": "0x1234",
    "password": "0x5678"}

   Description: Utilizes hexadecimal values, emphasizing diverse data format handling for security checks.

6. Extra Symbols After Valid JSON

   {"login": "admin",
    "password": "password"}@@@@@@}

   Description: Illustrates extraneous symbols following a valid JSON structure, highlighting the need for strict JSON syntax adherence.

7. Only Keys, Without Values

   {"login":,
    "password":}

   Description: Presents keys without corresponding values, stressing the importance of complete key-value pairs in authentication data.

8. Insertion of Control Characters

   {"login": "ad\u0000min",
    "password": "pass\u0000word"}

   Description: Features control characters within strings, underscoring the necessity of sanitizing inputs to prevent security breaches.

9. Long Unicode Strings

   {"login": "\u0061"*10000,
    "password": "\u0061"*10000}

   Description: Involves excessively long Unicode strings, indicating the need for handling and limiting input lengths.

10. Newline Characters in Strings

    {"login": "ad\nmin",
     "password": "pa\nssword"}

    Description: Incorporates newline characters, emphasizing the significance of managing special character sequences in authentication processes.

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This detailed API Security Cheat Sheet is crafted to aid developers and security experts in comprehensively understanding and preparing for a wide range of authentication scenarios. Each scenario presents unique challenges, from ensuring accurate data type handling and input sanitization to managing complex and unexpected data structures, all crucial for maintaining a secure API environment.