Security Review Skill
This skill ensures all code follows security best practices and identifies potential vulnerabilities.
When to Activate
- Implementing authentication or authorization
- Handling user input or file uploads
- Creating new API endpoints
- Working with secrets or credentials
- Implementing payment features
- Storing or transmitting sensitive data
- Integrating third-party APIs
Security Checklist
1. Secrets Management
❌ NEVER Do This
const apiKey = 'sk-proj-xxxxx'; // Hardcoded secret
const dbPassword = 'password123'; // In source code
✅ ALWAYS Do This
const apiKey = process.env.OPENAI_API_KEY;
const dbUrl = process.env.DATABASE_URL;
// Verify secrets exist
if (!apiKey) {
throw new Error('OPENAI_API_KEY not configured');
}
Verification Steps
- [ ] No hardcoded API keys, tokens, or passwords
- [ ] All secrets in environment variables
- [ ]
.env.localin .gitignore - [ ] No secrets in git history
- [ ] Production secrets in hosting platform (Vercel, Railway)
2. Input Validation
Always Validate User Input
import { z } from 'zod';
// Define validation schema
const CreateUserSchema = z.object({
email: z.string().email(),
name: z.string().min(1).max(100),
age: z.number().int().min(0).max(150),
});
// Validate before processing
export async function createUser(input: unknown) {
try {
const validated = CreateUserSchema.parse(input);
return await db.users.create(validated);
} catch (error) {
if (error instanceof z.ZodError) {
return { success: false, errors: error.errors };
}
throw error;
}
}
File Upload Validation
function validateFileUpload(file: File) {
// Size check (5MB max)
const maxSize = 5 * 1024 * 1024;
if (file.size > maxSize) {
throw new Error('File too large (max 5MB)');
}
// Type check
const allowedTypes = ['image/jpeg', 'image/png', 'image/gif'];
if (!allowedTypes.includes(file.type)) {
throw new Error('Invalid file type');
}
// Extension check
const allowedExtensions = ['.jpg', '.jpeg', '.png', '.gif'];
const extension = file.name.toLowerCase().match(/\.[^.]+$/)?.[0];
if (!extension || !allowedExtensions.includes(extension)) {
throw new Error('Invalid file extension');
}
return true;
}
Verification Steps
- [ ] All user inputs validated with schemas
- [ ] File uploads restricted (size, type, extension)
- [ ] No direct use of user input in queries
- [ ] Whitelist validation (not blacklist)
- [ ] Error messages don't leak sensitive info
3. SQL Injection Prevention
❌ NEVER Concatenate SQL
// DANGEROUS - SQL Injection vulnerability
const query = `SELECT * FROM users WHERE email = '${userEmail}'`;
await db.query(query);
✅ ALWAYS Use Parameterized Queries
// Safe - parameterized query
const { data } = await supabase.from('users').select('*').eq('email', userEmail);
// Or with raw SQL
await db.query('SELECT * FROM users WHERE email = $1', [userEmail]);
Verification Steps
- [ ] All database queries use parameterized queries
- [ ] No string concatenation in SQL
- [ ] ORM/query builder used correctly
- [ ] Supabase queries properly sanitized
4. Authentication & Authorization
JWT Token Handling
// ❌ WRONG: localStorage (vulnerable to XSS)
localStorage.setItem('token', token);
// ✅ CORRECT: httpOnly cookies
res.setHeader('Set-Cookie', `token=${token}; HttpOnly; Secure; SameSite=Strict; Max-Age=3600`);
Authorization Checks
export async function deleteUser(userId: string, requesterId: string) {
// ALWAYS verify authorization first
const requester = await db.users.findUnique({
where: { id: requesterId },
});
if (requester.role !== 'admin') {
return NextResponse.json({ error: 'Unauthorized' }, { status: 403 });
}
// Proceed with deletion
await db.users.delete({ where: { id: userId } });
}
Row Level Security (Supabase)
-- Enable RLS on all tables
ALTER TABLE users ENABLE ROW LEVEL SECURITY;
-- Users can only view their own data
CREATE POLICY "Users view own data"
ON users FOR SELECT
USING (auth.uid() = id);
-- Users can only update their own data
CREATE POLICY "Users update own data"
ON users FOR UPDATE
USING (auth.uid() = id);
Verification Steps
- [ ] Tokens stored in httpOnly cookies (not localStorage)
- [ ] Authorization checks before sensitive operations
- [ ] Row Level Security enabled in Supabase
- [ ] Role-based access control implemented
- [ ] Session management secure
5. XSS Prevention
Sanitize HTML
import DOMPurify from 'isomorphic-dompurify'
// ALWAYS sanitize user-provided HTML
function renderUserContent(html: string) {
const clean = DOMPurify.sanitize(html, {
ALLOWED_TAGS: ['b', 'i', 'em', 'strong', 'p'],
ALLOWED_ATTR: []
})
return <div dangerouslySetInnerHTML={{ __html: clean }} />
}
Content Security Policy
// next.config.js
const securityHeaders = [
{
key: 'Content-Security-Policy',
value: `
default-src 'self';
script-src 'self' 'unsafe-eval' 'unsafe-inline';
style-src 'self' 'unsafe-inline';
img-src 'self' data: https:;
font-src 'self';
connect-src 'self' https://api.example.com;
`
.replace(/\s{2,}/g, ' ')
.trim(),
},
];
Verification Steps
- [ ] User-provided HTML sanitized
- [ ] CSP headers configured
- [ ] No unvalidated dynamic content rendering
- [ ] React's built-in XSS protection used
6. CSRF Protection
CSRF Tokens
import { csrf } from '@/lib/csrf';
export async function POST(request: Request) {
const token = request.headers.get('X-CSRF-Token');
if (!csrf.verify(token)) {
return NextResponse.json({ error: 'Invalid CSRF token' }, { status: 403 });
}
// Process request
}
SameSite Cookies
res.setHeader('Set-Cookie', `session=${sessionId}; HttpOnly; Secure; SameSite=Strict`);
Verification Steps
- [ ] CSRF tokens on state-changing operations
- [ ] SameSite=Strict on all cookies
- [ ] Double-submit cookie pattern implemented
7. Rate Limiting
API Rate Limiting
import rateLimit from 'express-rate-limit';
const limiter = rateLimit({
windowMs: 15 * 60 * 1000, // 15 minutes
max: 100, // 100 requests per window
message: 'Too many requests',
});
// Apply to routes
app.use('/api/', limiter);
Expensive Operations
// Aggressive rate limiting for searches
const searchLimiter = rateLimit({
windowMs: 60 * 1000, // 1 minute
max: 10, // 10 requests per minute
message: 'Too many search requests',
});
app.use('/api/search', searchLimiter);
Verification Steps
- [ ] Rate limiting on all API endpoints
- [ ] Stricter limits on expensive operations
- [ ] IP-based rate limiting
- [ ] User-based rate limiting (authenticated)
8. Sensitive Data Exposure
Logging
// ❌ WRONG: Logging sensitive data
console.log('User login:', { email, password });
console.log('Payment:', { cardNumber, cvv });
// ✅ CORRECT: Redact sensitive data
console.log('User login:', { email, userId });
console.log('Payment:', { last4: card.last4, userId });
Error Messages
// ❌ WRONG: Exposing internal details
catch (error) {
return NextResponse.json(
{ error: error.message, stack: error.stack },
{ status: 500 }
)
}
// ✅ CORRECT: Generic error messages
catch (error) {
console.error('Internal error:', error)
return NextResponse.json(
{ error: 'An error occurred. Please try again.' },
{ status: 500 }
)
}
Verification Steps
- [ ] No passwords, tokens, or secrets in logs
- [ ] Error messages generic for users
- [ ] Detailed errors only in server logs
- [ ] No stack traces exposed to users
9. Blockchain Security (Solana)
Wallet Verification
import { verify } from '@solana/web3.js';
async function verifyWalletOwnership(publicKey: string, signature: string, message: string) {
try {
const isValid = verify(
Buffer.from(message),
Buffer.from(signature, 'base64'),
Buffer.from(publicKey, 'base64'),
);
return isValid;
} catch (error) {
return false;
}
}
Transaction Verification
async function verifyTransaction(transaction: Transaction) {
// Verify recipient
if (transaction.to !== expectedRecipient) {
throw new Error('Invalid recipient');
}
// Verify amount
if (transaction.amount > maxAmount) {
throw new Error('Amount exceeds limit');
}
// Verify user has sufficient balance
const balance = await getBalance(transaction.from);
if (balance < transaction.amount) {
throw new Error('Insufficient balance');
}
return true;
}
Verification Steps
- [ ] Wallet signatures verified
- [ ] Transaction details validated
- [ ] Balance checks before transactions
- [ ] No blind transaction signing
10. Dependency Security
Regular Updates
# Check for vulnerabilities
npm audit
# Fix automatically fixable issues
npm audit fix
# Update dependencies
npm update
# Check for outdated packages
npm outdated
Lock Files
# ALWAYS commit lock files
git add package-lock.json
# Use in CI/CD for reproducible builds
npm ci # Instead of npm install
Verification Steps
- [ ] Dependencies up to date
- [ ] No known vulnerabilities (npm audit clean)
- [ ] Lock files committed
- [ ] Dependabot enabled on GitHub
- [ ] Regular security updates
Security Testing
Automated Security Tests
// Test authentication
test('requires authentication', async () => {
const response = await fetch('/api/protected');
expect(response.status).toBe(401);
});
// Test authorization
test('requires admin role', async () => {
const response = await fetch('/api/admin', {
headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${userToken}` },
});
expect(response.status).toBe(403);
});
// Test input validation
test('rejects invalid input', async () => {
const response = await fetch('/api/users', {
method: 'POST',
body: JSON.stringify({ email: 'not-an-email' }),
});
expect(response.status).toBe(400);
});
// Test rate limiting
test('enforces rate limits', async () => {
const requests = Array(101)
.fill(null)
.map(() => fetch('/api/endpoint'));
const responses = await Promise.all(requests);
const tooManyRequests = responses.filter((r) => r.status === 429);
expect(tooManyRequests.length).toBeGreaterThan(0);
});
Pre-Deployment Security Checklist
Before ANY production deployment:
- [ ] Secrets: No hardcoded secrets, all in env vars
- [ ] Input Validation: All user inputs validated
- [ ] SQL Injection: All queries parameterized
- [ ] XSS: User content sanitized
- [ ] CSRF: Protection enabled
- [ ] Authentication: Proper token handling
- [ ] Authorization: Role checks in place
- [ ] Rate Limiting: Enabled on all endpoints
- [ ] HTTPS: Enforced in production
- [ ] Security Headers: CSP, X-Frame-Options configured
- [ ] Error Handling: No sensitive data in errors
- [ ] Logging: No sensitive data logged
- [ ] Dependencies: Up to date, no vulnerabilities
- [ ] Row Level Security: Enabled in Supabase
- [ ] CORS: Properly configured
- [ ] File Uploads: Validated (size, type)
- [ ] Wallet Signatures: Verified (if blockchain)
Resources
Remember: Security is not optional. One vulnerability can compromise the entire platform. When in doubt, err on the side of caution.