Red Hat Security Advisory: libsoup security update

1. Implementation · Input Validation

   Assume all input is malicious. Use an "accept known good" input validation strategy, i.e., use a list of acceptable inputs that strictly conform to specifications. Reject any input that does not strictly conform to specifications, or transform it into something that does.

2. Architecture and Design · Language Selection

   Use a language that provides appropriate memory abstractions.

OWASP Cheat Sheets

• XML Security (opens in a new tab)
• Mass Assignment (opens in a new tab)

OWASP ASVS 4.0.3

• V13.3.1 (opens in a new tab)
• V5.1.4 (opens in a new tab)
• V5.1.3 (opens in a new tab)

Attack patterns

• Overread Buffers (opens in a new tab)

From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

1. Implementation

   Only free pointers that you have called malloc on previously. This is the recommended solution. Keep track of which pointers point at the beginning of valid chunks and free them only once.

2. Implementation

   Before freeing a pointer, the programmer should make sure that the pointer was previously allocated on the heap and that the memory belongs to the programmer. Freeing an unallocated pointer will cause undefined behavior in the program.

3. Architecture and Design · Libraries or Frameworks

   Use a vetted library or framework that does not allow this weakness to occur or provides constructs that make this weakness easier to avoid.

From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

1. Implementation

   For any pointers that could have been modified or provided from a function that can return NULL, check the pointer for NULL before use. When working with a multithreaded or otherwise asynchronous environment, ensure that proper locking APIs are used to lock before the check, and unlock when it has finished.

2. Requirements

   Select a programming language that is not susceptible to these issues.

3. Implementation

   Check the results of all functions that return a value and verify that the value is non-null before acting upon it.

OWASP Cheat Sheets

• Logging (opens in a new tab)
• Error Handling (opens in a new tab)

OWASP ASVS 4.0.3

• V11.1.7 (opens in a new tab)

From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

1. Implementation · Libraries or Frameworks

   Choose a language or tool that provides automatic memory management, or makes manual memory management less error-prone.

2. Architecture and Design

   Use an abstraction library to abstract away risky APIs. Not a complete solution.

3. Architecture and Design · Build and Compilation

   Consider using the Boehm-Demers-Weiser garbage collector (bdwgc), which can help avoid leaks.

From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

1. Architecture and Design · Implementation

   Production applications should never use methods that generate internal details such as stack traces and error messages unless that information is directly committed to a log that is not viewable by the end user.

OWASP Cheat Sheets

• Error Handling (opens in a new tab)
• Authorization (opens in a new tab)

OWASP ASVS 4.0.3

• V14.3.2 (opens in a new tab)
• V8.3.4 (opens in a new tab)
• V14.3.3 (opens in a new tab)

Attack patterns

• Web Application Fingerprinting (opens in a new tab)
• System Location Discovery (opens in a new tab)

From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).