Ensure API reliability and security with comprehensive testing. Combine functional testing, performance and load testing, and security testing for a holistic approach. Protect your API from threats and provide a seamless user experience.

Jamal Hussain Shah
API Security Expert

Live Session Training Course

API endpoints account for approximately 80% of internet traffic, with many being outdated and highly vulnerable. Mastering API security testing offers significant opportunities to collaborate with software companies and developers who value the precision of manual testing. While automated tools are common, their frequent false positives and negatives highlight the necessity of manual verification for accurate results. This course is designed to build your manual testing expertise, positioning you as a trusted professional in the field. During the course, I’ll also present evidence of the 80% API traffic statistic, reinforcing the critical importance of these skills.

API security testing is a critical skill for identifying the most dangerous attacks outlined in the OWASP Top 10, which make up about 90% of all API vulnerabilities. For cybersecurity professionals, it’s essential to prioritize testing these key threats, and mastering them will provide you with valuable insights into securing APIs effectively.

Classic and Broken Authentication | API2:2023

Vulnerabilities: Weak passwords, credential stuffing, session hijacking.

Why Choose This Session?

• Clear and Practical: Learn the actual strategies used by security experts to test for classic authentication vulnerabilities effectively in a live session.
• No Distractions: Unlike other content that can lead to wasted time, my session will keep you focused on what really matters.
• Real-World Examples: Understand real-world issues faced by APIs with classic authentication vulnerabilities.

2023 API Security Statistics

In 2023, a significant number of API endpoints were still vulnerable to classic authentication weaknesses. While exact statistics may vary, it’s clear that many APIs continue to rely on outdated or weak authentication methods, making them prime targets for exploitation.

Course Title: Advanced API Authentication Attacks: Brute-Force, Password Spraying, and Base64 Encoding

We will cover all the questions listed below during the hands-on practice session.

• What is the difference between basic authentication and token-based authentication in APIs?
• How does the absence of session management in RESTful APIs influence authentication strategies?
• What are the common vulnerabilities associated with basic authentication in APIs?

Password Brute-Force Attacks

• What is a password brute-force attack in the context of API security, and how does it work?
• What tools can be used to conduct brute-force attacks on API authentication, and what are their key features?
• How can information from excessive data exposure vulnerabilities be leveraged to create targeted password lists for brute-forcing?
• What is the significance of the -d option in Wfuzz, and how does it help in brute-forcing authentication?
• How can the --hc option in Wfuzz help filter out irrelevant responses during brute-forcing?
• What type of status codes and response lengths are indicative of successful brute-force attempts in API testing?

Password Spraying

• What is password spraying, and how does it differ from brute-force attacks in terms of approach and effectiveness?
• Why is password spraying more effective than brute-force attacks in scenarios where there are account lockout policies?
• What is the strategy for creating an effective password-spraying list?
• How can reconnaissance help in building a user list for a password-spraying attack?
• What is the process for extracting email addresses from excessive data exposure vulnerabilities and using them in a password-spraying attack?
• How does Burp Suite’s Intruder support password-spraying attacks, and what configuration is required to use it effectively?
• What are the typical characteristics of a successful login response during a password-spraying attack?

Base64 Encoding and Authentication

• Why do some APIs base64-encode authentication payloads, and how can this be bypassed in a security test?
• How does Burp Suite facilitate base64 encoding and decoding during authentication attacks?
• What steps are involved in conducting a password-spraying attack with base64-encoded credentials using Burp Suite Intruder?
• How do you configure payload-processing rules in Burp Suite to handle base64 encoding during fuzzing?

Course Module: Comprehensive JWT Analysis and Security Testing

• What is the purpose of using tokens in authentication and authorization?
• What potential risks exist if tokens are not properly implemented or handled?
• What role does Burp Suite play in token analysis for identifying vulnerabilities?
• How can you proxy an API authentication request to Burp Suite for token analysis?
• What steps should you take in Burp Suite to forward a request to the Sequencer tool for token analysis?
• How does Sequencer in Burp Suite help in analyzing token randomness and complexity?
• What does the “Live Capture” feature in Sequencer do, and how is it used in token analysis?
• What is the purpose of defining the custom location of the token within the response in Burp Suite Sequencer?
• How do you configure the custom location of the token within the response in Burp Suite?
• Why is it important to analyze both the randomness and structure of tokens during a security assessment?
• What can you learn from analyzing tokens generated by an API like crAPI in Sequencer?
• What is the significance of tokens appearing to have enough randomness but still being vulnerable to token forgery?
• Explain how sequential token generation can make seemingly complex tokens predictable.
• What does an analysis of a poor token generation process reveal about token security weaknesses?
• How do you perform an analysis using bad tokens from the Hacking APIs GitHub repository?
• What does the “Manual load” option do in Burp Suite Sequencer, and how is it used for token analysis?
• What can you learn from analyzing the character-level analysis of tokens in Sequencer?
• How does the character-level analysis help identify patterns or weaknesses in token generation?
• What is the significance of finding that the first 8 characters in a token are fixed and the final 3 characters vary in a predictable pattern?
• How can you use the information from the analysis of weak token generation to perform brute-force attacks on token values?
• How can brute-forcing token possibilities help you gain unauthorized access to API endpoints?
• What security risks are involved when you find predictable patterns in a token, and how can they be mitigated?
• What actions can you take after successfully generating valid tokens through brute-forcing?
• How can analyzing tokens with Burp Suite’s Sequencer tool help identify vulnerabilities in an API’s token creation process?

• What security implications arise from predictable token patterns, and how can developers improve token generation security?
• What are the three main components of a JSON Web Token (JWT), and what is the purpose of each component?
• How can you decode the header and payload of a JWT?
• What information can you extract from the payload of a JWT?
• How is the signature of a JWT created, and what role does the secret key play in its generation?
• What is the significance of the “ey” prefix in a JWT, and why is it used?
• What can a leaked JWT potentially expose to an attacker, and how could this lead to unauthorized access?
• How can an attacker exploit a leaked JWT to impersonate a user or access an API?
• What is the process to analyze a JWT in Burp Suite or using a JWT debugger?
• What would happen if an attacker were to obtain the secret key used to sign a JWT?
• What steps should you take to prevent JWT attacks and ensure token integrity?
• What is the significance of the “HS512” algorithm, and how does it affect JWT security?

• How can automated tooling assist in discovering vulnerabilities in JWT implementations?
• What is JWT_Tool, and what capabilities does it provide for automating JWT analysis and attacks?
• How can you use JWT_Tool to perform a baseline analysis of a JWT?
• What is the “None Attack” in JWT security, and how can you exploit it to gain unauthorized access?
• How do you perform the Algorithm Switch Attack on a JWT using JWT_Tool? What is the goal of this attack?
• What is the JWT Crack Attack, and how does it help in cracking the secret used for JWT signature hashing?
• What tools can you use for offline hash-cracking attacks on JWTs, and how do they work?
• How can you use JWT_Tool to perform a crack attack using a wordlist or dictionary?
• What are the steps to create a JWT token with a switched algorithm to bypass a vulnerable JWT validation process?
• How can you simulate a scenario where an RS256 JWT is manipulated to use the HS256 algorithm? What is the advantage of this switch?
• What role does the public key play in attacking JWTs that use RS256 encryption, and how can you exploit this in JWT_Tool?
• How can you generate your own valid JWT tokens using the cracked secret key obtained from a JWT Crack Attack?
• After successfully cracking the JWT signature secret, how can you generate and test your own JWT token to impersonate other users or gain admin privileges?
• What are the key misconfigurations in JWTs that JWT_Tool scans for during a Playbook Scan, and how can these be exploited?

Special Offer: Only $ 70

Gain access to this expert-led session on classic authentication vulnerabilities for just $70. This is a limited-time offer to sharpen your skills and deepen your understanding of API security.

This revised version presents the course content in a more engaging and structured way, with the focus on the practical skills attendees will gain.

Lab Setup

A lab setup is required for classic authentication testing, and it should be done on either Ubuntu or Kali Linux. I will inform you about the specific tools needed for this testing a day before the session so you can prepare the lab environment accordingly.

Important: This price only for Classic Authentication penetration course.