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Projects/OWASP Framework Security Project/Secure LDAP API Standard
This standard is designed to describe the specific properties secure LDAP APIs have. APIs with these properties help developers, regardless of their skill or experience with LDAP, avoid the most common and serious vulnerabilities associated with developing LDAP client software.
- 1 Properties of Safe LDAP APIs
- 1.1 Documents the Security Risks of LDAP Filter Injection
- 1.2 Provides an LDAP Filter Escape Function
- 1.3 Provides LDAP Filter Syntax Templates
- 1.4 Provides an Abstract API for LDAP Filter Queries
- 1.5 Supports LDAPS
- 1.6 Supports LDAP with StartTLS
- 1.7 Enables SSL/TLS Certificate Validation by Default
- 1.8 Documents the Customization of Trusted Certificate Authorities
- 2 Grading Scale
- 3 TODO
Properties of Safe LDAP APIs
Documents the Security Risks of LDAP Filter Injection
The API documentation should include a warning about the risks of LDAP filter injection. The warning should occur on pages associated with LDAP filters functionality so that it is hard for any programmer to miss. The warning maybe short (as little as one sentence), but should reference documentation that describes the risk of injections. Consider using LDAP injection or LDAP Injection Prevention Cheat Sheet as a reference.
Provides an LDAP Filter Escape Function
Escaping special characters in LDAP filter expressions is well described in section 4 of RFC 2254. The API should provide a function which accepts a string (potentially containing LDAP filter special characters) and returns a string with the same string with any special characters appropriately escaped. For example, the string "Asterisk (*) is more beautiful than backslash (\).
" would be converted to "Asterisk \28\2a\29 is more beautiful than backslash \28\5c\29.
".
Provides LDAP Filter Syntax Templates
TODO
Provides an Abstract API for LDAP Filter Queries
TODO
Supports LDAPS
TODO
Supports LDAP with StartTLS
TODO
Enables SSL/TLS Certificate Validation by Default
TODO
Documents the Customization of Trusted Certificate Authorities
TODO
Grading Scale
TODO
TODO
- What other forms of encryption should we encourage? SASL and/or proprietary mechanisms?
- The LDAP injection page could use work. Some statements are a bit off base, and there should be a clearer statement of the risk.