Web Application Firewall Error Message Reconstruction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing Web Application Firewalls (WAFs) face challenges in handling malicious HTTP requests, leading to false positives and user experience issues, as current solutions require modifying source codes of HTTP Server Containers or server-side web applications, or offer limited flexibility in returning error responses.
Innovation Solution
A method and system for reconstructing response messages by customizing response-message templates, allowing for the generation of new response messages without modifying the HTTP server container or server-side web application codes, using a response message reconstructing module that merges error parameter information with response templates to provide more friendly error responses.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the WAF returns an error message when a malicious HTTP request is detected, then security is improved, but user experience deteriorates due to false positives
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an error message reconstruction module as an intermediary between the WAF and the user. When the WAF detects a malicious request and returns an error message, this module intercepts the error message and reconstructs it into a friendly version before presenting it to the user. The original security function of the WAF is preserved while the user experiences a friendly error message that doesn't reveal system internals or cause confusion.
2Ease of operation
If the source code of the HTTP Server Container is modified to reconstruct response pages, then user experience is improved, but device complexity increases due to code modification requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the error message handling function from the HTTP Server Container by introducing a separate error message reconstruction module. Instead of modifying the core server container code, the solution creates an independent module that receives error messages from the WAF, reconstructs them using templates, and returns friendly versions. This segmentation avoids complexity in the core system while achieving the desired user experience improvement.
Solution Approach 2:
The error message reconstruction module serves as an intermediary layer between the WAF and the user interface. It receives raw error messages from the WAF, processes them through template-based reconstruction, and outputs friendly error messages without requiring modifications to the HTTP Server Container or web application source codes.
3Ease of operation
If static error response pages are customized in the HTTP server, then ease of operation is improved, but adaptability deteriorates due to limited flexibility
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transforms the static error response approach into a dynamic one by introducing template variables and parameters. Instead of fixed static pages, the error message reconstruction module uses templates that can be dynamically filled with relevant information such as error type, request details, and contextual data. This allows the same template framework to adapt to different error scenarios while maintaining ease of configuration through template selection.
Solution Approach 2:
The solution changes parameters from static page content to dynamic template parameters. The error message reconstruction module accepts various parameters (error type, request method, URL, etc.) and substitutes them into template placeholders. This parameter-based approach provides flexibility to customize error messages for different scenarios without creating separate static pages for each case.
Data Source
AI summary
A computer-implemented method and system for reconstructing a response message to an improper accessing request in a web application environment. The method includes: obtaining the URL of a web application to be accessed by the improper accessing request and the error parameter information of the improper accessing request; obtaining a response template based on the obtained URL of the web application to be accessed; and merging the obtained error parameter information of the improper accessing request with the obtained response template to generate a reconstructed response message for the improper accessing request. The system includes: a message obtaining device; a response message template obtaining device; and a response message merging device.