The bottom line is this - while this cookie option flag does absolutely nothing to prevent XSS attacks, it does significanly help to prevent the #1 XSS attack goal which is stealing SessionIDs. While HTTPOnly is not a "silver bullet" by any means, the potential ROI of implement it is quite large. Notice I said "potential" as in order to provide the intended protections, two key players have to work together. This article looks at one way you can make your Web cookies more secure by using the Apache's extension called modsecurity. If you are interested in this please read on for more information and how you set this up on your own Apache web server.. The link for this article located at modsecurity is no longer available. . Discover the strategies for enhancing cookie security through the HTTPOnly attribute via Apache's mod_security for improved web safety protocols.. web cookie security, HTTPOnly, Apache ModSecurity, secure cookies, web applications. . Bill Locke
ModSecurity is an open source intrusion detection and prevention engine for web applications. It operates embedded into the web server, acting as a powerful umbrella - shielding applications from attacks. ModSecurity supports Apache (both branches) today, with support for Java-based servers coming soon.. . .. ModSecurity is an open source intrusion detection and prevention engine for web applications. It operates embedded into the web server, acting as a powerful umbrella - shielding applications from attacks. ModSecurity supports Apache (both branches) today, with support for Java-based servers coming soon. ModSecurity integrates with the web server, increasing your power to deal with web attacks. Some of its features worth mentioning are: Overview Request filtering ; incoming requests are analysed as they come in, and before they get handled by the web server or other modules. Anti-evasion techniques ; paths and parameters are normalised before analysis takes place in order to fight evasion techniques. Understanding of the HTTP protocol ; since the engine understands HTTP, it performs very specific and fine granulated filtering. POST payload analysis ; the engine will intercept the contents transmitted using the POST method, too. Audit logging ; full details of every request (including POST) can be logged for later analysis. HTTPS filtering ; since the engine is embedded in the web server, it gets access to request data after decryption takes place. . OSSEC is a free software solution that strengthens online application security through comprehensive threat detection and response capabilities.. ModSecurity, Web Application Security, Intrusion Detection, Security Engine, Firewall. . LinuxSecurity.com Team
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