Web server vulnerabilities are continually changing as cybercriminals continue to seek new ways to exploit your security vulnerabilities and web application security issues. For your organization to be able to properly protect itself against web server vulnerabilities, it’s essential to stay up-to-date with common web server vulnerabilities, web browser vulnerabilities, and stay versed on all web application security issues and solutions.
When your organization promotes a culture of knowledge about web security issues and solutions, your employees will not only be able to effectively spot security vulnerabilities but be able to come up with effective solutions to address those issues as well.
Let’s look at how your organization can protect itself against web server vulnerabilities attacks.
Common Web Server Vulnerabilities
SQL Injection
SQL injections are one of the first security vulnerabilities attacks cybercriminals try to gain access to your system. With an SQL injection attack, criminals can gain access to your database, spoof a user’s identity, and even destroy or alter data in the database. SQL injections are extremely detrimental to an organization because they allow criminals to gain access to customer information like credit card numbers, passwords, and contact information.
Cross-Site Scripting (XSS)
These types of web server vulnerabilities attacks send malicious code to other users by injecting code into the application. These attacks are extremely hurtful to an organization because they can lead to customers themselves being infected with malware, having their information stolen, and even their computers being recruited into large botnets.
Distributed Denial of Service Attacks (DDoS)
Distributed Denial of Service Attacks or DDoS attacks generate requests from thousands of IP addresses in an attempt to flood a site with traffic and make it impossible for the server to respond to requests. DDoS attacks are so harmful to an organization because they can slow a site down to the point where customers are not willing to use it and even make a website completely unavailable. In a world where online presence is everything, DDoS attacks can be particularly catastrophic.
Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF)
Cross-Site Request Forgery or CSRF attacks occur when users are tricked into clicking a link or downloading compromised files that execute unwanted or unknown actions on an authenticated user session. CSRF attacks make it possible for criminals to make unwanted purchases on behalf of users, causing users to distrust an organization’s web server and in-turn, the organization.
When it comes to addressing web browser vulnerabilities, many companies don’t know where to begin to ensure their protection against cybercriminals. Now that we have a better understanding of common web server vulnerabilities, let’s take a look at how you can protect your organization from these security vulnerabilities by properly addressing web application security issues and solutions.
Common Web Server Solutions
SQL Injection
While web server vulnerabilities are quite common among many companies, you can easily protect your organization from SQL injections by using prepared statements with parameterized queries. This ensures that all SQL codes are defined first and the queries are passed later allowing the database to accurately differentiate between SQL codes and SQL data.
Cross-Site Scripting (XSS)
The best way to protect your organization against XSS attacks is to focus on how your user-generated content could be interpreted by the browser as something other than what you intended. When your employees are generating HTML, it’s essential that they use functions that explicitly make the changes they mean to make. Your employees can also use functions in their templating tool that automatically do appropriate escaping, as long as they’re not concatenating strings or setting raw HTML content.
Distributed Denial of Service Attacks (DDoS)
Since DDoS attacks rely on bots to perform their work, the best way to protect your organization against these attacks is to have your information security department work closely with the botnet hunter community. When your IT department knows who to call to stop this type of attack before it can spread and wreak havoc on your organization, they’ll not only save valuable time and effort but valuable business resources as well. For IT departments that are already versed on dealing with DDoS attacks, the best way to prevent this security vulnerability from doing more harm to your organization is to implement real-time monitoring so your IT department knows about any attacks before they get out of hand.
Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF)
The best way to protect your organization against CSRF attacks is to store a secret token in a hidden form field that is inaccessible from third party sites. While you will have to verify this hidden field, it will drastically reduce the amount of CSRF attacks your organization faces, allowing your IT department to focus on making the organization more successful, rather than spending valuable time addressing common web server vulnerabilities.
As web application security issues and solutions change with the sophistication of cybercriminals, the best way to protect your organization against common web server vulnerabilities is to implement software that allows you to implement real-time monitoring on all your applications, uses HTTPS, and offers robust website security tools. Understanding web application security issues and solutions is the best way to protect your organization against all types of attacks and ensure that your consumers are well protected as well.
