Tracer Cookie Security System for XSS Detection
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities allow attackers to hijack web browsers by executing script codes that collect and send cookie values to remote servers, often through social engineering techniques, posing a significant threat to user data security.
Innovation Solution
A distributed security system that generates and monitors tracer cookie data, allowing requests only if the tracer data is included in the expected parameter type, such as an HTTP cookie header, and initiating a security process if it is not, thereby preventing malicious data transmission to unauthorized servers.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the system allows all browser requests to pass through, then user convenience and website accessibility are maintained, but the system becomes vulnerable to XSS attacks and malicious data transmission
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a security system intermediary that sits between the browser and web servers. This intermediary monitors HTTP requests and responses, inserting tracer cookies into legitimate responses and detecting their presence or absence in subsequent requests. The intermediary allows legitimate traffic to pass through while blocking malicious XSS attacks, thus maintaining both security and accessibility without requiring changes to user behavior or website functionality.
2Reliability
If the system implements strict security monitoring of all browser requests, then XSS attacks are detected and blocked, but system complexity and processing overhead increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses tracer cookies as simplified copies or markers that represent the presence of legitimate website sessions. Instead of implementing complex analysis of all request parameters and payloads, the system simply checks for the presence or absence of these tracer cookie markers. This copying approach dramatically reduces system complexity while maintaining effective detection capability, as the tracer cookies serve as easily identifiable indicators of legitimate versus malicious requests.
3Reliability
If the system blocks requests with tracer data in unexpected parameter types, then malicious XSS attacks are prevented, but legitimate requests with unusual parameter structures may be falsely blocked
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a feedback mechanism where the security system learns from the tracer cookie responses. Legitimate websites that respond with proper tracer cookies establish a baseline of expected behavior. When requests are made, the system compares them against this established feedback pattern. This feedback loop reduces false positives by adapting to legitimate variations in request structures while maintaining blocking of malicious patterns, as legitimate sites will consistently include their tracer cookies in expected locations.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems, methods and apparatus for detecting malicious requests. In one aspect, a browser request is received from a client device. It is determined whether the request includes tracer data in a first parameter type. If the request is determined to include the tracer data in the first parameter type, then the request is allowed. If the request is determined to include the tracer data in a parameter type other than the first parameter type, then a security process is initiated.