OWASP Coraza WAF is a golang modsecurity compatible web application firewall library. From 3.0.0 until 3.8.0, the t:jsDecode transformation in internal/transformations/js_decode.go:64-70 includes the backslash in the octal buffer, causing ParseInt to fail and return a null byte. The flaw is triggered when a rule relies on t:jsDecode and the request contains JavaScript octal escape sequences. An unauthenticated attacker can encode attack syntax with JavaScript octal escapes so the backend decodes the intended bytes while Coraza rules using t:jsDecode inspect corrupted null-byte output. The mismatch can bypass WAF rules and expose the protected application to attacks such as cross-site scripting or SQL injection. This issue is fixed in version 3.8.0.
Weakness
The product does not properly encode or decode the data, resulting in unexpected values.
Potential Mitigations
- 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.
- When performing input validation, consider all potentially relevant properties, including length, type of input, the full range of acceptable values, missing or extra inputs, syntax, consistency across related fields, and conformance to business rules. As an example of business rule logic, “boat” may be syntactically valid because it only contains alphanumeric characters, but it is not valid if the input is only expected to contain colors such as “red” or “blue.”
- Do not rely exclusively on looking for malicious or malformed inputs. This is likely to miss at least one undesirable input, especially if the code’s environment changes. This can give attackers enough room to bypass the intended validation. However, denylists can be useful for detecting potential attacks or determining which inputs are so malformed that they should be rejected outright.
Related Attack Patterns
- https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/120.html
- https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/267.html
- https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/3.html
- https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/52.html
- https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/53.html
- https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/64.html
- https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/71.html
- https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/72.html
- https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/78.html
- https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/80.html