How To Secure Your Applications with API Penetration Testing?‍

As more and more businesses move to the cloud and rely on APIs to provide functionality for their customers, it's essential that these APIs are secure. Hackers are always looking for new ways to exploit vulnerabilities in systems, so it's important to perform regular API penetration tests using the right API penetration testing methodology to ensure your system is safe.

In the following article, we'll discuss what API penetration testing is and why it's important. We'll also look at the API penetration testing methodology involved in performing an API penetration test and some of the top tools available for doing so.

Understanding What an API Is

APIs, or application programming interfaces, are software platforms that allow different applications to interact with one another. To put it simply, you can think of APIs as messengers that deliver data back and forth between systems. The two most frequent API designs are REST and SOAP.

You may not be aware, but a large majority of the web and mobile applications you use on a daily basis are powered by APIs. They enable businesses to partner with outside developers, suppliers, and other companies while still keeping data transfer secure between all systems.

Thanks to APIs, information can flow seamlessly between multiple discrete applications or software components that are working together. In other words, they allow for seamless data transfer and integration. However, this also offers a potential entry point for cybercriminals looking to access sensitive data processed by these applications.

Why Do You Need Regular Examining of Your APIs?

APIs are a popular target for hackers because of their prevalence. A recent study from Salt Security found that 91% of businesses experienced an API security incident last year. In a recent Gartner webinar on API security, experts predicted that using APIs will be the most prevalent method for businesses to lose data by 2022.

Let's use Instagram as an example. By utilizing APIs, Instagram users are able to reset their passwords by having a 6-digit code sent to the account owner's phone. Although Instagram places a limit on the number of code submissions per IP address, there is no limit placed on the number of attempts made per account. By using this flaw, an adversary was able to exploit it and steal the identities of numerous high-profile users, as detailed in TIME's reporting on the issue.

The potential impact of a breach caused by API vulnerabilities necessitates that businesses take action. They must begin by integrating security testing into the CI/CD pipeline before applying security by design to their API development procedures. Static analysis, for example, is a form of static testing that can help prevent issues in APIs by detecting and mitigating design flaws. However, such analysis does not always reveal business logic problems that lead to many API security breaches. As a result, companies should also perform frequent API penetration testing to ensure they are secure.

API Penetration Testing Methodology

Planning

During the project's planning, scoping/target information will be taken from the customer. This is the place to include any relevant IP addresses and URLs, as well as a definition file or documentation for all endpoints' definitions. Authentication credentials or API tokens (2 sets of credentials for each role being tested) will also be found here, along with restricted endpoints that should not be scanned during API penetration testing.

Execution

The client will be notified via start notification once the test has officially begun. The first stage of the process, known as open-source intelligence gathering, focuses on studying publicly available information and resources. This phase's objective is to find any sensitive information that may assist in the subsequent phases of testing, such as email addresses, usernames, the technology used, user manuals, forum postings, and so on.

Post-Execution

The Triaxiom team will document the findings of your assessment, which includes both an executive-level report and a technical findings report, at the conclusion of the active phase. The purpose of this report is for management to read and comprehend it. The topics included are assessment activities, scope, most notable issues discovered, risk scoring, organizational security strengths, and accompanying screenshots.

The technical findings report will contain a list of all vulnerabilities, with information on how to replicate the problem, assess the danger, and take remediation measures. It will also include a list of recommended actions for each vulnerability.

Top API Penetration Testing Tools

Astra's pentest

The 3000 tests that can be run by Astra's Pentest make it a popular API penetration testing solution that is used to identify flaws in APIs. Some of the notable features of Astra's Pentest include:

• Comprehensive Vulnerability Scanning: Astra's security scanner can find vulnerabilities based on public CVEs, the OWASP Top 10, and other well-known standards.
• Regular Penetration tests: By regularly testing for vulnerabilities and quickly fixing any that are found, the Astra Pentest API testing solution helps organizations keep their APIs safe from attack. By taking these precautions, fewer data will be stolen or taken advantage of by a malicious attacker.
• Rescanning: Rescanning is among the services offered by Astra Pentest, which offers another scan to ensure that any new flaws caused by the changes made in an API test and vulnerability repair do not appear.
• Pentest Certificate: After the rescan is completed, Astra Pentest provides a publicly verifiable certificate to its clients that the test was successful, demonstrating that any new flaws have been fixed. This certification may help your company's reputation and encourage new business.
• Zero False Positives: Zero false positives in vulnerability detection are guaranteed by the team of specialist pentesters at Astra Security. To guarantee accuracy and dependability, we vet all automated pentest results thoroughly.

Postman

Postman is a well-known API builder and test tool with over 17 million users at 500,000 companies. It's been available as a browser plugin since 2013, when it became a SaaS platform or desktop application compatible with Windows, Linux, and macOS.

The API from Postman provides a user-friendly interface to organize, group, reuse, and distribute your API requests and samples. This enables collaboration among users and automated testing of the API as well as request chaining. Monitors may be added to the collection so that they execute automated tests every five minutes or less. The monitors from Postman will keep users up-to-date with any API issues.

Assertible

Assertible is an assertion tool that requires no code, yet it is still powerful enough to test your API's various features. Assertions can be as complicated or simple as you want them to be from automated tests to custom checks. With the JSONPath language construct, turnkey assertions may also be used for data integrity checks and JSON schema validation.

Test variables may be gathered via setup steps that use HTTP requests to create more complicated testing situations.

Katalon Studio

The Katalon Studio is a one-of-a-kind test automation software. Not only does it automate APIs, web, mobile and desktop apps on Windows, Linux and macOS; but also all three operating systems! Katalon Studio is one of the most popular test tools because it can be used for a variety of purposes. With specific support for SOAP and REST requests as well as cross-platform compatibility, data-driven testing has never been easier to execute with commands that read from multiple data sources simultaneously.

Conclusion

API penetration testing is a critical part of securing your applications. By testing your APIs for vulnerabilities, you can help prevent sensitive data from being stolen or manipulated by a malicious attacker. There are many tools available to help you with this process, so be sure to choose one that best suits your needs. Thanks for reading!