Fix code scanning alert - Clear text transmission of sensitive cookie

[MarBeanInc1111]

Tracking issue for:

• [ ] https://github.com/MarBeanInc1111/refactored-engine/security/code-scanning/1

[codeautopilot[bot]]

Potential solution

The solution involves ensuring that the application is served over HTTPS and that any cookies, specifically session cookies, are flagged as secure. This will prevent the transmission of sensitive information over clear text (unencrypted HTTP).

What is causing this bug?

The bug is caused by the lack of secure cookie configuration and the absence of HTTPS for the transmission of cookies. Without the 'Secure' flag, cookies can be sent over unencrypted connections, exposing sensitive information to potential interception. Additionally, serving the application over HTTP instead of HTTPS does not provide the necessary encryption for data in transit.

Code

To solve the bug, the following changes should be implemented:

1. Configure the session middleware to set the 'Secure' attribute on cookies:

   app.use(session({
   secret: 'some_secret_key',
   resave: false,
   saveUninitialized: true,
   store: new MongoStore({ mongooseConnection: mongoose.connection }),
   cookie: {
   secure: true, // Add this line to ensure cookies are flagged as secure
   httpOnly: true,
   maxAge: 3600000
   }
   }));

2. Modify the server setup to create an HTTPS server:

   
   const https = require('https');
   const fs = require('fs');

// Load SSL certificate files const privateKey = fs.readFileSync('path/to/private.key', 'utf8'); const certificate = fs.readFileSync('path/to/certificate.crt', 'utf8'); const ca = fs.readFileSync('path/to/ca_bundle.crt', 'utf8');

const credentials = { key: privateKey, cert: certificate, ca: ca };

// Create HTTPS server const httpsServer = https.createServer(credentials, app);

httpsServer.listen(port, () => { console.log(Server running at https://localhost:${port}); });

3. Ensure that any services running in Docker containers, such as `ttyd`, are also configured to use HTTPS if they handle cookies or sensitive information.

# How to replicate the bug
To replicate the bug, one would need to observe the transmission of cookies over an HTTP connection. This can be done by:

1. Setting up the application without the 'Secure' flag on cookies and without HTTPS.
2. Logging in or performing an action that generates a session cookie.
3. Using a network packet analyzer like Wireshark to capture the traffic and observe that the cookie is transmitted in clear text.

# Task
The task is to ensure that all cookies, especially session cookies, are transmitted securely over HTTPS. This involves configuring the session middleware to set the 'Secure' flag on cookies and setting up an HTTPS server for the application. Additionally, any related services in Docker containers should be reviewed and configured for HTTPS if necessary.

[Click here to create a Pull Request with the proposed solution](https://api.codeautopilot.com/create-pr?task=23141&hash=47443831da614bdb783e40f91e6127b760c34a846f86a16ab3bcedb292bec062)

**Files used for this task:**

<details>
  <summary>Changes on pilot/templates/tpl/node_express_mongoose/routes/middleware/authMiddleware.js</summary>

  After reviewing the source code provided for `pilot/templates/tpl/node_express_mongoose/routes/middleware/authMiddleware.js`, it appears that this specific file does not set or modify any cookies directly. The middleware function `isAuthenticated` checks for the existence of a `userId` in the `req.session` object to determine if the user is authenticated, but it does not create or alter cookies.

Since the task for this file is to ensure that cookies are flagged as secure with `'secure: true'`, and there are no cookies being set or modified in this file, there is no action required within this particular file regarding the secure flag for cookies.

The actual setting of the `req.session` object and any associated cookies would likely occur elsewhere in the codebase, possibly in the session management configuration or in the routes that handle authentication and session creation. Those would be the appropriate places to ensure that cookies are flagged as secure.

In summary, this file (`authMiddleware.js`) is not relevant to the bug described in the ticket, which is about ensuring the secure transmission of cookies. The investigation should continue in other parts of the codebase where cookies are actually being set or modified.

</details>

<details>
  <summary>Changes on pilot/templates/tpl/node_express_mongoose/routes/authRoutes.js</summary>

  Upon reviewing the provided source code in `authRoutes.js`, the file is responsible for handling authentication routes such as registration, login, and logout for a Node.js application using Express. The code involves creating new users, authenticating existing users, and destroying sessions upon logout.

However, there is no explicit cookie setting logic present in this file. The code does not show any direct manipulation of cookies, such as setting a session cookie or any other type of cookie. Instead, it relies on the `req.session` object to store the user's session information, which is typically managed by a session middleware like `express-session`.

Since the task is to ensure that cookies are flagged as secure, we would need to ensure that the session middleware is configured correctly to set the 'Secure' attribute on the session cookie. This configuration is not done within the `authRoutes.js` file but would typically be set up in the main server configuration file, often named `app.js` or `server.js`.

To address the issue mentioned in the ticket, the following steps should be taken in the appropriate configuration file (not in `authRoutes.js`):

1. Ensure that the session middleware is configured with the `secure: true` option. This might look something like this:

```javascript
app.use(session({
  secret: 'some_secret_key',
  resave: false,
  saveUninitialized: true,
  cookie: {
    secure: true, // Ensure cookies are sent over HTTPS
    maxAge: 3600000 // Set cookie max age (example: 1 hour)
  }
}));

2. Make sure that the application is served over HTTPS. This is typically done by setting up an HTTPS server with the https module in Node.js or by using a reverse proxy like Nginx or Apache that handles HTTPS termination.

Since the authRoutes.js file does not contain any direct cookie handling logic, there is no action to be taken within this file to address the clear text transmission of sensitive cookies. The necessary changes should be made in the server configuration file where the session middleware is set up.

Changes on docker-compose.yml

The `docker-compose.yml` file provided defines the services for a Docker environment, including a service named `gpt-pilot` and a `postgres` database service. The `gpt-pilot` service is built from a Dockerfile and exposes ports 7681 and 3000. The `postgres` service uses the official `postgres` image and exposes port 5432. Regarding the task at hand, which is to ensure that the services are configured to use HTTPS and to check if any reverse proxies or load balancers need to be configured to handle HTTPS traffic securely, the `docker-compose.yml` file does not provide any explicit configuration for HTTPS. There are no indications of SSL/TLS setup, certificates, or reverse proxy configurations that would suggest HTTPS is being used. To address the issue of clear text transmission of sensitive cookies, the following steps should be taken: 1. Configure the `gpt-pilot` service to use HTTPS by setting up SSL/TLS encryption. This typically involves obtaining an SSL certificate and configuring the web server (such as Nginx or Apache) to use that certificate for HTTPS connections. 2. If a reverse proxy or load balancer is being used, it should be configured to handle HTTPS traffic. This would involve setting up SSL termination at the proxy or load balancer and ensuring that traffic between the proxy/load balancer and the `gpt-pilot` service is also encrypted. 3. Update the `docker-compose.yml` file to include the necessary configurations for HTTPS, such as mounting volumes for SSL certificates and adding environment variables or command arguments that enable HTTPS in the service. Since the `docker-compose.yml` file does not contain any web server or reverse proxy service definitions, it is likely that the actual HTTPS configuration would need to be done in the `Dockerfile` or in the application code itself (e.g., in the `server.js` file of the Node.js application). In summary, the `docker-compose.yml` file does not currently address the issue of clear text transmission of sensitive cookies because it lacks any HTTPS configuration. Additional steps are required to secure the transmission of cookies over the network.

Changes on Dockerfile

After reviewing the provided Dockerfile, it appears that the Dockerfile is primarily focused on setting up a Python environment with `ttyd` (a terminal over HTTP and HTTPS) and Node.js via `nvm`. The Dockerfile does not directly configure the environment to use HTTPS by default, nor does it set any environment variables related to security or cookies. Here are the key observations: 1. The Dockerfile is based on the `python:3.11` image. 2. It installs `ttyd` which can serve a terminal over HTTP and HTTPS. 3. It sets up Node.js using `nvm`. 4. It copies the application code into the container and installs Python dependencies. 5. It exposes port 7681, which is the default port for `ttyd`. 6. The CMD instruction runs `ttyd` with `bash` as the command to be accessed over the web. However, the Dockerfile does not include any instructions to enforce HTTPS or to configure SSL/TLS certificates, which would be necessary for secure communication. Additionally, there are no environment variables set that would enforce secure cookie transmission. To address the issue of clear text transmission of sensitive cookies, the following steps should be taken: 1. Configure `ttyd` to use HTTPS by providing SSL/TLS certificates. This might involve adding instructions to the Dockerfile to copy SSL certificate files into the container and then running `ttyd` with the appropriate flags to use those certificates. 2. If the application itself is responsible for setting cookies, ensure that the application is configured to use HTTPS and that cookies are set with the `Secure` attribute. This would likely involve changes to the application code rather than the Dockerfile. 3. If there are any environment variables that the application uses to determine whether to set secure cookies, those should be added to the Dockerfile with appropriate values (e.g., `ENV SECURE_COOKIES=true`). Since the Dockerfile does not directly deal with the application's handling of cookies, it is likely that the necessary changes to enforce secure cookie transmission will need to be made in the application code and configuration files, not in the Dockerfile itself. The Dockerfile could be modified to support HTTPS for `ttyd`, but that would not address the secure cookie transmission issue unless `ttyd` is directly involved in handling the application's cookies.

Changes on pilot/templates/tpl/node_express_mongoose/server.js

Upon reviewing the provided source code in `server.js`, the following observations and recommendations can be made in relation to the issue of clear text transmission of sensitive cookies: 1. **Use of HTTPS**: The server is currently set up to listen on an HTTP port, as indicated by the console log message `Server running at http://localhost:${port}`. There is no indication in the provided code that HTTPS is being used. To address this, the server should be configured to use HTTPS by creating an HTTPS server with the `https` module, which requires an SSL/TLS certificate and private key. 2. **Secure Cookie Configuration**: The session configuration does not explicitly set the 'Secure' attribute for cookies. The 'Secure' attribute should be added to the session cookie configuration to ensure that the cookie is only sent over HTTPS connections. This can be done by adding the `cookie: { secure: true }` option to the session middleware configuration. Here is an example of how to modify the session configuration to include the 'Secure' attribute: ```javascript app.use( session({ secret: process.env.SESSION_SECRET, resave: false, saveUninitialized: false, store: MongoStore.create({ mongoUrl: process.env.DATABASE_URL }), cookie: { secure: true, // Ensure cookies are sent over HTTPS httpOnly: true, // Mitigate XSS attacks by not allowing client-side script access to the cookie // You may also want to set other cookie attributes such as 'sameSite' for additional security }, }), ); ``` Additionally, to fully implement HTTPS, you would need to modify the server initialization to include the creation of an HTTPS server. This would typically look something like this: ```javascript const https = require('https'); const fs = require('fs'); // Read SSL certificate files const privateKey = fs.readFileSync('path/to/private.key', 'utf8'); const certificate = fs.readFileSync('path/to/certificate.crt', 'utf8'); const ca = fs.readFileSync('path/to/ca_bundle.crt', 'utf8'); const credentials = { key: privateKey, cert: certificate, ca: ca }; // Create HTTPS server const httpsServer = https.createServer(credentials, app); httpsServer.listen(port, () => { console.log(`Server running at https://localhost:${port}`); }); ``` Please note that the actual file paths and names for the SSL certificate files will vary depending on how you have obtained your SSL certificates and where you have stored them. In summary, to address the issue of clear text transmission of sensitive cookies, the server must be configured to use HTTPS, and the session cookies must be set with the 'Secure' attribute. The provided code does not currently implement these security measures, and changes are required to comply with best practices for secure cookie transmission.

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