The majority of Android applications we test, even critical apps, do not prevent an attacker from successfully analysing, reverse engineering or modifying the app’s binary code. Most Android apps can easily be decompiled into readable source code that resembles the original. What can an attacker potentially do with an application’s binary? The following are a […]
Category: researchblog
The Real Impact of Cross-Site Scripting
Cross-site scripting (XSS) is probably the most prevalent high risk web application vulnerability nowadays, and yet it is still one of the most overlooked by developers and defenders alike. At Dionach we have experienced a few situations when reporting XSS in penetration test reports as a critical or high risk issue, and the client would […]
Throwback Threat: Macro Malware
Macro malware has been on the rise over the past couple of years, but unlike the 90s, the authors now include sophisticated threat actors working on behalf of organised crime syndicates and nation state entities; something which makes this throwback threat all the more serious the second time round. This post details this issue and what can be done to help combat it.
What is the Risk if You Don’t Fix Perceived Meaningless Vulnerabilities?
In a recent external penetration test, I was able to chain multiple vulnerabilities together allowing me to fully compromise one of the client’s servers. Whilst many of these vulnerabilities were low risk it is important to take care of every security vulnerability to minimise risk to systems. The scope was large and the organisation had […]
LogMeIn Rescue Unattended Service Privilege Escalation
LogMeIn Rescue is a well-known and widely used remote access tool, primarily designed for IT staff to provide end users with support. A typical LogMeIn Rescue session will look something like this: A user calls the support technician with a problem. The technician sends the user a link, which lets them download LogMeIn Rescue. The […]
From 0 to 100: Innocuous Source Code to Web Server Compromise
Antonio Sánchez, Lead Consultant In a recent web application penetration test I was challenged with figuring out how to fully compromise a client’s website. The site was using the latest version of WordPress, and although they had a few plugins installed, they seemed to be patched as well. However, I did find an interesting web […]
Cyber Security: Back to Basics
As an industry, we are vulnerable to being dazzled by new technologies, distracted by future trends, and overwhelmed by threat intelligence and security analytics data. In doing so, we are in danger of losing sight of the fundamentals of cyber security.
A case of a misconfigured CORS implementation
During a recent penetration test I conducted against one of our client’s websites, I found an interesting case of a misconfigured CORS implementation that I would like to quickly showcase in this post. From Wikipedia, cross-origin resource sharing (CORS) is a mechanism that allows restricted resources (e.g. fonts) on a web page to be requested […]
NESA UAE Information Assurance Standards
The UAE’s National Electronic Security Authority (NESA) has developed the UAE Information Assurance Standards (IAS). These are primarily based on ISO 27001:2005. This blog entry reviews the IAS and looks at how organisations can get compliant to them.
Risk based Application Penetration Testing
It is generally accepted within the information security world that penetration testing is a good way to provide assurance as to the security of applications or infrastructures. With numerous companies offering these testing services, how do you differentiate and evaluate which company uses the best approach for your organisation? At Dionach we perform a large […]