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Difficulty: MediumApplication and Software Vulnerabilities

An application security analyst is evaluating a custom backend Java service that receives serialized object payloads over an unauthenticated network socket to restore user session state. Code review reveals that the application reinstantiates these binary payloads directly into memory without performing type verification or input validation. Which of the following security risks and mitigation strategies correctly apply to this scenario? (Select TWO.)

  1. The application is vulnerable to insecure deserialization, which can enable remote code execution or arbitrary object state manipulation.Answer
  2. Refactoring the application to use structured, type-safe data interchange formats (such as JSON or Protocol Buffers) mitigates the vulnerability.Answer
  3. C
    The vulnerability allows attackers to perform SQL injection attacks by directly executing database commands within client-side web browsers.
  4. D
    Configuring a network-level layer 4 packet filtering firewall is the primary remediation control to prevent unauthorized object instantiation.

Answer

The application is vulnerable to insecure deserialization, which can enable remote code execution, and refactoring the service to use safe data interchange formats like JSON or Protocol Buffers mitigates the risk.
Insecure deserialization occurs when untrusted data is used to instantiate objects, allowing attackers to manipulate application logic or execute arbitrary commands. Using type-safe data formats like JSON removes the capability for attackers to supply executable object creation payloads.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the technical scenario for vulnerability indicators
Identified unvalidated binary object payload instantiation over a network socket.
Passing serialized objects directly into memory without type checking defines insecure deserialization.
2
Identify the primary security threat
Insecure deserialization allows remote code execution (RCE) or state manipulation during object reconstruction.
Serialized streams can contain execution gadget chains that trigger upon instantiation.
3
Select appropriate application-level remediation controls
Replace binary object serialization with safe data serialization formats like JSON.
Data-only serialization formats prevent object bytecode execution during parsing.

Key Concept

Insecure Deserialization and Application Remediation Controls
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Topics

Application and Software Vulnerabilities

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