An ontology of security threats to web applications

Abstract

As the use of the internet for commercial purposes continues to grow, so do the number of security threats which attempt to disrupt online systems. A number of these threats are in fact unintended. For example, a careless employee might drop a cup of coffee onto essential equipment. However, when compared to the brick and mortar world, the internet offers would-be attackers a more anonymous environment in which to operate. Also, the free availability of hacking tools makes it possible even for the curious teenager to carry out dangerous attacks. Despite this ever-present threat however, it is all too often the case that security is dealt with (if at all) after a web application has been developed. This is mainly due to our software development heritage whereby companies prefer to focus on the functionality of new systems because that provides an immediate return on investment. As a precursor to proposing an framework for building security into web applications, this paper presents an ontology of threat to web applications. The thinking behind this is that much the same as in the military world, one needs to have as much intelligence about the enemy as possible, the same can be argued in the case of online security threats. Such an ontology would enable stake holder in online applications to take less of a reactive stance but instead be more proactive by being aware what’s out there.