Overview
Scan application source code for missing or insufficient input validation that could lead to injection attacks (SQL, XSS, command injection), buffer overflows, and path traversal vulnerabilities. Analyzes how user-provided data flows from HTTP parameters, form fields, and API inputs through the application to identify locations where sanitization or validation is absent.
How It Works
- Initiate Scan: The user requests an input validation scan, triggering the skill.
- Code Analysis: The skill uses the input-validation-scanner plugin to analyze the specified codebase or file.
- Vulnerability Identification: The plugin identifies instances where input validation may be missing or insufficient.
- Report Generation: The skill presents a report highlighting potential vulnerabilities and their locations in the code.
When to Use This Skill
This skill activates when you need to:
- Audit a codebase for input validation vulnerabilities.
- Review newly written code for potential XSS or SQL injection flaws.
- Harden an application against common web security exploits.
- Ensure compliance with security best practices related to input handling.
Examples
Example 1: Identifying XSS Vulnerabilities
User request: "Scan the user profile module for potential XSS vulnerabilities."
The skill will:
- Activate the input-validation-scanner plugin on the specified module.
- Generate a report highlighting areas where user input is directly rendered without proper sanitization, indicating potential XSS vulnerabilities.
Example 2: Checking for SQL Injection Risks
User request: "Check the database access layer for potential SQL injection risks."
The skill will:
- Use the input-validation-scanner plugin to examine the database access code.
- Identify instances where user input is used directly in SQL queries without proper parameterization or escaping, indicating potential SQL injection vulnerabilities.
Best Practices
- Regular Scanning: Integrate input validation scanning into your regular development workflow.
- Contextual Analysis: Always review the identified vulnerabilities in context to determine their actual impact and severity.
- Comprehensive Validation: Ensure that all user-supplied data is validated, including data from forms, APIs, and external sources.
Integration
This skill can be used in conjunction with other security-related skills to provide a more comprehensive security assessment. For example, it can be combined with a static analysis skill to identify other types of vulnerabilities or with a dependency scanning skill to identify vulnerable third-party libraries.
Prerequisites
- Access to codebase and configuration files in ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/
- Security scanning tools installed as needed
- Understanding of security standards and best practices
- Permissions for security analysis operations
Instructions
- Identify security scan scope and targets
- Configure scanning parameters and thresholds
- Execute security analysis systematically
- Analyze findings for vulnerabilities and compliance gaps
- Prioritize issues by severity and impact
- Generate detailed security report with remediation steps
Output
- Security scan results with vulnerability details
- Compliance status reports by standard
- Prioritized list of security issues by severity
- Remediation recommendations with code examples
- Executive summary for stakeholders
Error Handling
If security scanning fails:
- Verify tool installation and configuration
- Check file and directory permissions
- Validate scan target paths
- Review tool-specific error messages
- Ensure network access for dependency checks
Resources
- Security standard documentation (OWASP, CWE, CVE)
- Compliance framework guidelines (GDPR, HIPAA, PCI-DSS)
- Security scanning tool documentation
- Vulnerability remediation best practices