Fix Broken User Authentication in Actix Web
Broken authentication is the gateway for account takeovers and credential stuffing. In the Actix Web ecosystem, this usually stems from manual session management, plaintext password comparisons, or failing to set secure cookie attributes. If you aren't using a cryptographically secure session middleware and a robust KDF like Argon2, your app is basically an open door.
The Vulnerable Pattern
use actix_web::{post, web, HttpResponse, cookie::Cookie};
#[post(“/login”)] async fn login(form: web::Form) -> HttpResponse { // VULNERABILITY: Plaintext password comparison if form.username == “admin” && form.password == “p@ssword123” { // VULNERABILITY: Insecure cookie (no HttpOnly, no Secure flags, predictable value) return HttpResponse::Ok() .cookie(Cookie::new(“auth”, “admin_session”)) .finish(); } HttpResponse::Unauthorized().finish() }
The Secure Implementation
The vulnerable code is a disaster: it compares passwords in plaintext, making it susceptible to timing attacks and database leaks, and issues a raw cookie lacking 'HttpOnly' and 'Secure' flags, making it trivial to steal via XSS. The secure implementation uses 'Argon2' to verify hashes, preventing leakage. It leverages 'actix-session' (configured with a secure Key) to handle encrypted, server-side or signed client-side sessions automatically. Crucially, 'session.renew()' is called upon login to rotate the session ID, neutralizing session fixation attacks.
use actix_web::{post, web, HttpResponse}; use actix_session::Session; use argon2::{password_hash::{PasswordHash, PasswordVerifier}, Argon2};#[post(“/login”)] async fn login(form: web::Form
, session: Session, db: web::Data ) -> HttpResponse { let user_record = db.find_user(&form.username).await.unwrap(); let parsed_hash = PasswordHash::new(&user_record.password_hash).expect(“Invalid hash format”); // FIX: Use Argon2 for secure password verification if Argon2::default().verify_password(form.password.as_bytes(), &parsed_hash).is_ok() { // FIX: Use actix-session for encrypted, signed session management session.insert("user_id", user_record.id).expect("Session failure"); // FIX: Prevent Session Fixation by renewing the session ID session.renew(); return HttpResponse::Ok().finish(); } HttpResponse::Unauthorized().finish()
}
Your Actix Web API
might be exposed to Broken User Authentication
74% of Actix Web apps fail this check. Hackers use automated scanners to find this specific flaw. Check your codebase before they do.
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