How to Secure Your Cookies...
Russell D. Nomer, CISSP
Information Security, Cybersecurity, Information Governance and Electronic Discovery Management Consultant
Cookies are a vital part of the modern web, providing users with an improved experience and allowing website owners to track user activity. However, cookies also represent a security risk if not properly implemented. To ensure that your website is secure for both you and your users, it’s important to understand how to implement secure cookies on your site.?
The first step in implementing secure cookies is setting the “secure” flag when creating them. This will tell browsers that they should only be sent over HTTPS connections rather than HTTP connections which can be intercepted by malicious actors or snoopers on public networks like Wi-Fi hotspots or coffee shops.
Additionally, make sure all cookie values are encrypted so they cannot easily be read by anyone who might gain access to them either through packet sniffing or other means of interception while being transmitted across the network from server-to-client (browser).
It's also important to set expiration times for each cookie as this helps prevent session hijacking attacks where attackers may try to use stolen sessions IDs associated with active authenticated sessions in order attempt unauthorized activities within those accounts/sessions?
Finally, always keep up with any new updates regarding best practices for securely managing cookies since technology changes quickly and what was considered safe yesterday may no longer apply today due changes in browser behavior around handling these types of data elements between client & server interactions.
By following these steps you can ensure that your website is using secure cookies appropriately without compromising user privacy or exposing yourself to unnecessary risks from potential attacks targeting insecurely configured sites.
The following is an example of what is expected vs an Actual incorrect :
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What is EXPECTED:
Headers:?[all set-cookie headers include 'secure']
ACTUAL finding from 2/8/2023 on a financial service company's site:
Set-Cookie: ASP.NET_SessionId HttpOnly;
Set-Cookie: NSC_SED-XXX.SFHJPOT.DPN-9.3-80_mc HttpOnly;
Set-Cookie: SC_ANALYTICS_GLOBAL_COOKIE HttpOnly;
Russell D. Nomer, CISSP founded Russell Nomer Consulting in 2006. If you would like to assess your domain's security posture for insecure cookies or other cyber hygiene issues, click here to get a free assessment.