Cloudfront

Securing Web Application against threats using Web App Penetration testing

by Pen Testing

Accelerate, Secure, and Scale Content with AWS CloudFront

An employee engagement provider specializing in employee research and surveys experienced several challenges as its user base expanded rapidly. The primary issues included:
  • High Latency: Customers from distant regions were facing slow page load times.
  • Poor User Experience: Slow loading for product demonstrations and lag in search functionality.
  • Traffic Spikes: High number of user events caused unpredictable traffic surges, leading to performance bottlenecks and increased server costs.
  • Security Concerns: The site was subject to malicious traffic and attempted attacks from various regions.

THE CHALLENGE

  • Global Latency: The Application servers were located in a single region. This caused high latency for users in far-off regions (e.g., Europe, Asia-Pacific users accessing U.S.-based server).
  • Scalability Issues: High traffic during flash sales and promotional events often led to slowdowns or server crashes.
  • Content Delivery: Product videos and large images were taking too long to load for international users, leading to cart abandonment and lost revenue.
  • Security Risks: The company faced a growing number of Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks and attempted web exploits.

Ryval-X Solution:

Ryval-X implemented AWS CloudFront as the primary solution for improving content delivery and enhancing site security. We deployed the solution in conjunction with other AWS services, such as Amazon S3 and AWS WAF.

Solution Architecture:

Global Content Delivery:

  • Ryval-X integrated CloudFront with their S3 buckets (used to store static assets like images, videos, and survey documentation).
  • CloudFront’s global edge locations ensured that cached content, such as product images and videos, was served from locations closest to the end-users, minimizing latency.
  • By using a Web Distribution setup, dynamic content from the customer API and search functionality was also routed through CloudFront, optimizing delivery with faster round-trip times.

Dynamic Content Acceleration:

  • For search functionality and real-time updates, CloudFront leveraged origin caching and Lambda@Edge to cache dynamic responses at the edge based on user region.
  • This improved the speed of API responses and reduced load on the origin servers.
  • Lambda@Edge functions were used to personalize content for users, such as serving localized promotions and customizing headers based on the user’s location.

Scalability and Traffic Management:

  • CloudFront’s ability to scale automatically with demand allowed the customer to handle sudden traffic spikes during promotional campaigns without any performance degradation.
  • The company no longer needed to over-provision its backend infrastructure, reducing server costs while ensuring consistent performance during high-traffic periods.

Security Enhancements:

  • AWS Shield Standard was enabled to provide DDoS protection, helping to mitigate volumetric attacks that could potentially overwhelm the site.
  • AWS WAF (Web Application Firewall) was configured with CloudFront to filter out malicious traffic based on IP reputation, SQL injection patterns, and cross-site scripting attempts.
  • Geo-Blocking was set up using CloudFront to restrict access from certain regions known for generating malicious traffic, further securing the platform.
  • Signed URLs and Cookies were utilized for premium content delivery, ensuring that only authenticated users could access restricted content like high-resolution product demos.

What customer achieved:

1. Reduced Latency by 60%

After implementing CloudFront, global users experienced a significant reduction in latency. The average page load time for users outside the U.S. dropped by 60%, leading to improved user experience and higher engagement rates.

2. Cost Efficiency

By offloading traffic to CloudFront’s edge locations, the customer reduced the load on its origin servers, leading to a 30% reduction in infrastructure costs. They no longer needed overprovisioning the infra resources for traffic spikes.

3. Improved Scalability

CloudFront’s auto-scaling features allowed the customer to seamlessly handle high-traffic periods during surveys without downtime or slowdowns. The platform successfully managed a 300% spike in traffic without any performance issues.

4. Enhanced Security

AWS Shield and AWS WAF, combined with CloudFront, drastically reduced the impact of DDoS attacks and blocked thousands of malicious requests daily. The customer saw a 95% decrease in the volume of successful attacks.

5. Faster Content Delivery

Caching product images, CSS, and JavaScript files at CloudFront’s edge locations sped up the load times for all static content. Video buffering was minimized, improving user retention and reducing cart abandonment.

Key Metrics Before and After CloudFront:

Metric
Before CloudFront
After CloudFront
Average Page Load Time
3.5 seconds
1.4 seconds
Global User Latency
High (2-4 seconds)
Reduced by 60%
Server Downtime During Sales
Frequent during spikes
None
Infrastructure Cost
High provisioning
Reduced by 30%
DDoS Attacks
High provisioning
Effectively mitigated

Key Learnings:

  • Optimize Cache Invalidation: Efficient cache invalidation strategies were critical for ensuring that users received up-to-date content without increasing the load on the origin servers.
  • Leverage Lambda@Edge: Personalizing content at the edge using Lambda@Edge allowed the company to improve user experience without having to significantly increase backend complexity.
  • Integrate WAF Early: Enabling AWS WAF from the start was crucial in preventing malicious requests and protecting the platform from web-based exploits.

Conclusion:

By implementing AWS CloudFront, Ryval-X significantly improved the performance and security of its customer survey platform. The company was able to provide a better user experience through faster content delivery, enhance site security, and reduce costs by offloading traffic to edge locations and reducing the load on the origin infrastructure.

This implementation allowed the customer to scale efficiently with growing user demand, maintain high availability during traffic surges, and protect itself from security threats.

Vulnerability Assessment & Penetration testing for a SaaS Rewards Platform customer

by Cyber SecurityPen Testing

Vulnerability Assessment & Penetration testing for a SaaS Rewards Platform customer

Web-Application-Penetration

A startup SaaS provider specializes in providing end-to-end reward experience to employees, colleagues and customers. Given the sensitivity of the data they handle, ensuring the security of their web application is paramount. To identify vulnerabilities and enhance their security posture, the provider engaged Ryval-X (an AWS Advanced Partner) to conduct a comprehensive penetration test of their web application.

THE CHALLENGE

  • Identify Vulnerabilities: Uncover potential security weaknesses in the web application.
  • Assess Impact: Evaluate the potential impact of discovered vulnerabilities on the business.
  • Enhance Security: Provide recommendations to mitigate identified risks.
  • Compliance: Ensure the web application meets industry standards and regulatory requirements.

Scope:

  • The penetration test focused on the provider’s SaaS platform, which included features such as user authentication, fund transfers, account management, and transaction history.
  • Both authenticated and unauthenticated access points were tested.
  • The testing was conducted in a non-production environment to avoid disrupting live services.

Ryval-X Methodology:

Ryval-X penetration test process followed a structured approach based on the OWASP Testing Guide: Information Gathering:
  • The penetration test focused on the provider’s SaaS platform, which included features such as user authentication, fund transfers, account management, and transaction history.
  • Both authenticated and unauthenticated access points were tested.
  • The testing was conducted in a non-production environment to avoid disrupting live services.
Identity Management Testing:
  • User authentication mechanisms were tested for vulnerabilities, such as weak passwords, lack of multi-factor authentication (MFA), and password reset flaws.
  • Authorization checks were performed to ensure proper role-based access control.
Authentication Testing:
  • Brute force attacks were attempted to identify weak login credentials.
  • Session management issues, such as session fixation and session hijacking, were tested.
Input Validation Testing:
  • The application was tested for common input validation issues, including SQL injection, cross-site scripting (XSS), and cross-site request forgery (CSRF).
  • Automated tools and manual techniques were used to identify injection points and other input-related vulnerabilities.
Client-Side Testing:
  • The client-side code (JavaScript) was reviewed for vulnerabilities.
  • The security of cookies, local storage, and other client-side storage mechanisms was assessed.
Configuration and Deployment Management Testing:
  • The configuration of the web server, application server, and database was reviewed for misconfigurations.
  • SSL/TLS configurations were examined to ensure secure communication.

Our Findings:

Critical:
  • SQL Injection: Identified in the login form, allowing attackers to bypass authentication and access sensitive data.
  • Insecure Direct Object References (IDOR): Allowed unauthorized users to access other users’ account information.
High:
  • Cross-Site Scripting (XSS): Found in the transaction history page, enabling attackers to execute malicious scripts in users’ browsers.
  • Weak Password Policy: Allowed users to set easily guessable passwords, increasing the risk of account compromise.
Medium:
  • Session Management Flaws: Sessions were not properly invalidated upon logout, potentially allowing session hijacking.
  • Missing HTTP Security Headers: Lack of security headers like Content Security Policy (CSP) and X-Content-Type-Options.
Low:
  • Information Disclosure: Error messages revealed sensitive information about the application stack.

Ryval-X Recommendations:

Remediation:
  • Implement parameterized queries to prevent SQL injection.
  • Use secure coding practices to validate and sanitize all user inputs.
  • Enforce strong password policies and implement MFA.
  • Properly manage user sessions and invalidate them upon logout.
  • Add necessary security headers to HTTP responses.
Enhancements:
  • Conduct regular security audits and penetration tests.
  • Provide security training for developers.
  • Establish a vulnerability management program to address and track security issues.
Monitoring and Response:
  • Implement intrusion detection and prevention systems.
  • Set up real-time monitoring and alerting for suspicious activities.

The Ryval-X Impact:

  • The SaaS provider promptly addressed the critical and high-severity vulnerabilities, significantly reducing their risk exposure.
  • The provider implemented the recommended security measures and improved their overall security posture.
  • Regular security assessments were established to maintain a robust security framework.

What Customer Realized:

By conducting a thorough penetration test, the SaaS provider not only identified and mitigated existing vulnerabilities but also strengthened their security practices, ensuring the safety and trust of their customers.

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