Browser Data Transmission Validation Against Malicious Third Parties
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Solution Overview
Problem
Online data and credit card skimming attacks pose a persistent threat to ecommerce websites as malicious malware can send sensitive information to unauthorized third parties, bypassing cross-site scripting prevention measures.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a system where a computer application, such as a web browser, verifies the authenticity of a target website by checking against a list of allowed websites maintained by a certificate authority, blocking data transmission to unauthorized sites and alerting administrators or reporting compromised websites.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If cross-site scripting prevention is used to block malicious data transmission, then security against injected scripts is improved, but it cannot prevent attacks where data is sent from trusted websites to malicious third parties
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary validation by checking whether the destination website is authorized to receive data before allowing the transmission to occur. The certificate authority maintains a list of authorized websites, and the browser verifies the destination against this list prior to sending any sensitive information, preventing fraudulent transmissions in advance
Solution Approach 2:
A certificate authority acts as an intermediary between websites and browsers to establish trusted relationships. The certificate authority signs lists of authorized websites with digital certificates, creating a verification mechanism that enables browsers to distinguish between legitimate and malicious destination websites
2Reliability
If the browser verifies every destination website against a certificate authority list, then data transmission security is improved, but system complexity and verification time increase
Solution Approach 1:
The certificate authority serves multiple functions: it issues digital certificates to websites, maintains the authorized website list, and provides verification services to browsers. This multi-functional approach consolidates security infrastructure rather than requiring separate systems for each function
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses digital certificates as cryptographic copies of trust relationships. Instead of requiring direct verification of website authenticity through complex protocols, the browser verifies a digital certificate copy that proves the website's authorization, simplifying the verification process while maintaining security
3Reliability
If the browser blocks data transmission to unauthorized websites, then prevention of data theft is improved, but legitimate transactions may be interrupted
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements feedback mechanisms where website administrators can report unauthorized blocks to the certificate authority, and the certificate authority updates the authorized website list accordingly. This feedback loop ensures that legitimate websites are not permanently blocked and can be added to the authorized list when needed
Solution Approach 2:
Website administrators perform preliminary actions by submitting authorized website lists to the certificate authority before potential transmission issues occur. This advance registration ensures that legitimate destinations are already authorized and will not be blocked during normal operations
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods for preventing the fraudulent sending of data from a computer application to a malicious third party are disclosed. In one embodiment, a method for preventing a computer application from sending data to an unauthorized website may include: (1) receiving, at a computer application executed by an electronic device and from a first website, an identification of a second website for receiving data from the computer application; (2) providing, by the computer application and to a certificate authority, the identification of the second website, wherein the certificate authority validates that the second website is on a list of allowed websites for the first website; (3) receiving, by the computer application and from the certificate authority, validation; and (4) communicating, by the computer application, the data to the second website.