Exploring ZAP: A Web Application Security Testing Tool

Introduction:

ZAP

Zed Attack Proxy, stands out as an open-source gem maintained under the umbrella of OWASP. This integrated penetration testing tool is revered for its effectiveness in identifying vulnerabilities in web applications. Developed by the Open Web Application Security Project (OWASP), ZAP operates as a Man-In-The-Middle (MITM) proxy, placing itself between the user’s browser and the web server to analyze and modify traffic for security testing purposes.

Why use ZAP?

1. It is a user-friendly, facilitating easy setup, running, and monitoring of scans and exploits. It provides information in a comprehensible format, displaying alerts, statistics, and recent activities.
2. ZAP’s Automatic Scanning:s for common vulnerabilities such as cross-site scripting (XSS), SQL injection, cross-site request forgery (CSRF), and more.
3. ZAP allows users to interact with applications, manipulate requests, and observe responses to identify security weaknesses manually thru Manual Testing.
4. ZAP conducts both active scans (crafting requests and analyzing responses) and passive scans (observing traffic to detect issues).
5. ZAP sends malformed requests, including invalid or randomly generated data through Fuzzing, to test an application’s robustness.

ZAP proves to be a versatile tool applicable to various web security situations, including vulnerability assessment and exploitation.

Footprint Web Infrastructure with Spidering

In this scenario, we conduct a passive scan along with spidering to discover hidden content and functionality. The procedure involves using ZAP to enumerate a website, initiating automated scans, and identifying vulnerabilities for potential exploitation.

Steps:

1. Launch ZAP on a Parrot OS machine.
2. Perform an automated scan on the target website using the traditional spider method.
3. Analyze results in the “Spider” and “Active Scan” tabs, listing webpages and associated resources.
4. Explore the “Alerts” tab to identify vulnerabilities and their severity.
5. Utilize the information to plan the exploitation of vulnerabilities.

Session Hijacking

This scenario delves into the phases of session hijacking, where an adversary seizes control of a valid TCP communication session between client and server. Using ZAP, we intercept and manipulate traffic, demonstrating how session hijacking can compromise user connections.

Steps:

1. Set up ZAP as a proxy for the victim machine.
2. Capture and analyze HTTP requests and responses using the “Break” tab in ZAP.
3. Manipulate the URL during the session to hijack and alter the content displayed on the browser.
4. Showcase the hijacked website, emphasizing the potential impact on user security.

Hacking Stay-logged-In Cookies with ZAP and Fuzzy

In this scenario, we utilize ZAP’s fuzzing feature to brute-force through the authentication mechanism of a website that employs stay-logged-in cookies. The demonstration showcases how ZAP can be used to intercept and modify cookies to gain unauthorized access.

Steps:

1. Track the lab website using ZAP.
2. Decode and analyze the stay-logged-in cookie.

structure of Stay-Logged-In Cookie

1. Use ZAP’s Fuzzer to set up payloads for brute-force attacks on the cookie.
2. Initiate the fuzzer and observe HTTP responses for successful access attempts.
3. Highlight the potential risks and impact of such attacks on websites vulnerable to brute-force attacks.

Conclusion:

From footprinting web infrastructure to demonstrating advanced attacks like session hijacking and cookie hacking, ZAP proves its efficacy in identifying and mitigating vulnerabilities. Security professionals, developers, and quality assurance teams can leverage ZAP’s capabilities to fortify web applications against evolving cyber threats.