Christophe Limpalair
Co-Founder of Cybr, and Course Author
Defenses - OS Command Injections
Defenses against OS Command Injections
- Avoid calling OS commands directly
- Escape values added to OS commands specific to each OS
- Parameterization in conjunction with Input Validation
Avoid Calling OS Commands Directly
Use language-specific APIs or libraries instead of shell commands
ie: mkdir() vs system() or exec()
Dangerous Calls
| Language | API |
|---|---|
| Java | Runtime.exec() |
| C/C++ | system exec ShellExecute |
| Python | exec eval os.system os.popen subprocess.popen subprocess.call |
Source:
Dangerous Calls
| Language | API |
|---|---|
| PHP | system shell_exec exec proc_open eval |
Source:
Escape values specific to each OS
Disarm potentially harmful commands from user-supplied input.
ie: escapeshellarg() vs escapeshellcmd()
Parameterization & Input Validation
Layer 1 - parameterization to enforce separation between the data and the command, and proper quoting + encoding
Parameterization & Input Validation
Layer 2 - input validation to verify that user-supplied data matches expectations
Validating commands: allowlists
Validating arguments: allowlists, regular expressions, maximum lengths, type verifications (integer/string/...), etc...
Additional Defenses
Follow the principle of least privileges when configuring apps and servers.
If you can, create isolated accounts with even more restrictions that are only used for a single purpose.
<?php
if( isset( $_POST[ 'Submit' ] ) ) {
// Get input
$target = $_REQUEST[ 'ip' ];
// Determine OS and execute the ping command.
if( stristr( php_uname( 's' ), 'Windows NT' ) ) {
// Windows
$cmd = shell_exec( 'ping ' . $target );
}
else {
// *nix
$cmd = shell_exec( 'ping -c 4 ' . $target );
}
// Feedback for the end user
$html .= "<pre>{$cmd}</pre>";
}
?>
<?php
if( isset( $_POST[ 'Submit' ] ) ) {
// Get input
$target = $_REQUEST[ 'ip' ];
// Set blacklist
$substitutions = array(
'&&' => '',
';' => '',
);
// Remove any of the charactars in the array (blacklist).
$target = str_replace( array_keys( $substitutions ), $substitutions, $target );
// Determine OS and execute the ping command.
if( stristr( php_uname( 's' ), 'Windows NT' ) ) {
// Windows
$cmd = shell_exec( 'ping ' . $target );
}
else {
// *nix
$cmd = shell_exec( 'ping -c 4 ' . $target );
}
// Feedback for the end user
$html .= "<pre>{$cmd}</pre>";
}
?>
<?php
if( isset( $_POST[ 'Submit' ] ) ) {
// Get input
$target = trim($_REQUEST[ 'ip' ]);
// Set blacklist
$substitutions = array(
'&' => '',
';' => '',
'| ' => '',
'-' => '',
'$' => '',
'(' => '',
')' => '',
'`' => '',
'||' => '',
);
// Remove any of the charactars in the array (blacklist).
$target = str_replace( array_keys( $substitutions ), $substitutions, $target );
// Determine OS and execute the ping command.
if( stristr( php_uname( 's' ), 'Windows NT' ) ) {
// Windows
$cmd = shell_exec( 'ping ' . $target );
}
else {
// *nix
$cmd = shell_exec( 'ping -c 4 ' . $target );
}
// Feedback for the end user
$html .= "<pre>{$cmd}</pre>";
}
?>
<?php
if( isset( $_POST[ 'Submit' ] ) ) {
// Check Anti-CSRF token
checkToken( $_REQUEST[ 'user_token' ], $_SESSION[ 'session_token' ], 'index.php' );
// Get input
$target = $_REQUEST[ 'ip' ];
$target = stripslashes( $target );
// Split the IP into 4 octects
$octet = explode( ".", $target );
// Check IF each octet is an integer
if( ( is_numeric( $octet[0] ) ) && ( is_numeric( $octet[1] ) ) && ( is_numeric( $octet[2] ) ) && ( is_numeric( $octet[3] ) ) && ( sizeof( $octet ) == 4 ) ) {
// If all 4 octets are int's put the IP back together.
$target = $octet[0] . '.' . $octet[1] . '.' . $octet[2] . '.' . $octet[3];
// Determine OS and execute the ping command.
if( stristr( php_uname( 's' ), 'Windows NT' ) ) {
// Windows
$cmd = shell_exec( 'ping ' . $target );
}
else {
// *nix
$cmd = shell_exec( 'ping -c 4 ' . $target );
}
// Feedback for the end user
$html .= "<pre>{$cmd}</pre>";
}
else {
// Ops. Let the user name theres a mistake
$html .= '<pre>ERROR: You have entered an invalid IP.</pre>';
}
}
// Generate Anti-CSRF token
generateSessionToken();
?>127 0 0 1
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<?php
if( isset( $_POST[ 'Submit' ] ) ) {
// Check Anti-CSRF token
checkToken( $_REQUEST[ 'user_token' ], $_SESSION[ 'session_token' ], 'index.php' );
// Get input
$target = $_REQUEST[ 'ip' ];
$target = stripslashes( $target );
// Split the IP into 4 octects
$octet = explode( ".", $target );
// Check IF each octet is an integer
if( ( is_numeric( $octet[0] ) ) && ( is_numeric( $octet[1] ) ) && ( is_numeric( $octet[2] ) ) && ( is_numeric( $octet[3] ) ) && ( sizeof( $octet ) == 4 ) ) {
// If all 4 octets are int's put the IP back together.
$target = $octet[0] . '.' . $octet[1] . '.' . $octet[2] . '.' . $octet[3];
// Determine OS and execute the ping command.
if( stristr( php_uname( 's' ), 'Windows NT' ) ) {
// Windows
$cmd = shell_exec( 'ping ' . $target );
}
else {
// *nix
$cmd = shell_exec( 'ping -c 4 ' . $target );
}
// Feedback for the end user
$html .= "<pre>{$cmd}</pre>";
}
else {
// Ops. Let the user name theres a mistake
$html .= '<pre>ERROR: You have entered an invalid IP.</pre>';
}
}
// Generate Anti-CSRF token
generateSessionToken();
?>Defending against OS Command Injections
By Christophe Limpalair
