Server-Side Security Report Encryption for Vulnerability Detection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current web security certification methods are inadequate in exposing server-side vulnerabilities, as external scanners are limited in detecting dormant threats like persistent cross-site scripting, and users lack protection from server-side attacks.
Innovation Solution
A method involving public key encryption allows a server to generate and encrypt security reports, which are then decrypted by clients to determine server-side security levels, enabling targeted scanning and browser reconfiguration based on vulnerability assessments.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Area of stationary object
If external scanners are used to scan the server for vulnerabilities, then the scanning coverage can be extended, but the ability to detect server-side vulnerabilities remains limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a server-side scanning module as an intermediary that performs the actual vulnerability scanning. This module has direct access to server-side code and data, enabling it to detect vulnerabilities that external scanners cannot find. The intermediary then generates and signs a report that the client can verify, thus resolving the contradiction between extended coverage and detection accuracy.
Solution Approach 2:
The server performs self-scanning through the server-side scanning module, which autonomously identifies vulnerabilities in its own codebase and configuration. This self-service approach allows the server to provide accurate vulnerability information to clients without relying on external scanners' limited capabilities, thereby maintaining both broad coverage and high detection precision.
2Reliability
If the server provides detailed security information to clients, then user confidence and security awareness are improved, but the risk of information leakage increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a digitally signed report as an intermediary between the server's vulnerability data and the client. The report contains necessary security information for user confidence but is processed through cryptographic verification, which prevents direct access to raw vulnerability data and thus mitigates information leakage risks while maintaining reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transforms detailed vulnerability information into a simplified, verified security status indicator that the client can trust. Similar to color changes that convey information without revealing underlying complexity, the signed report provides confidence-building security information while hiding sensitive details that could lead to information leakage.
3Measurement precision
If client-side scanning is performed, then the user can verify server security, but false positives may occur reducing efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The server performs preliminary vulnerability scanning and generates a signed report before the client conducts any scanning. This preliminary action provides the client with authoritative security information upfront, reducing the need for extensive client-side scanning and thereby minimizing false positives while maintaining verification capability, thus improving overall scanning efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The signed vulnerability report serves as feedback from the server to the client, providing authoritative security information that guides and constrains client-side scanning efforts. This feedback mechanism reduces unnecessary scanning and false positives by giving the client accurate baseline information, thereby maintaining verification precision while improving productivity.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods for server security verification include acquiring a public key associated with a received report that includes an indication regarding the presence of a vulnerability for each vulnerability, the report having been generated at a server; decrypting the received report using the public key; determining a level of server-side security based on the decrypted report using a processor; and reconfiguring a browser at the client responsive to the determined level of server-side security.