Fix Broken User Authentication in RedwoodJS
RedwoodJS handles much of the heavy lifting via dbAuth, but developers often bypass security defaults during custom service implementation. Broken User Authentication in this stack typically involves weak password verification logic, susceptibility to timing attacks, or improper session handling. If you're manually comparing hashes or failing to use the built-in crypto utilities, you're pwned.
The Vulnerable Pattern
export const signIn = async ({ email, password }) => {
const user = await db.user.findUnique({ where: { email } })
if (user && user.hashedPassword === password) {
// VULNERABILITY: Plaintext comparison or weak hash comparison
// susceptible to timing attacks and leaks account existence.
return user
}
throw new Error('Invalid username or password')
}The Secure Implementation
The vulnerable code uses a direct equality check which is vulnerable to timing attacks and assumes the password isn't properly salted. The secure implementation uses Redwood's 'verifyPassword' utility, which leverages Argon2 by default. It ensures constant-time comparison to prevent side-channel attacks and uses the stored salt. Additionally, we throw a generic 'AuthenticationError' and implement a dummy check for non-existent users to prevent 'Account Enumeration' via response time differences.
import { AuthenticationError } from '@redwoodjs/graphql-server' import { verifyPassword } from '@redwoodjs/auth-dbauth-api'export const signIn = async ({ email, password }) => { const user = await db.user.findUnique({ where: { email } })
if (!user) { // Mitigate user enumeration by performing a dummy hash check await verifyPassword({ password: ‘dummy’, hashedPassword: ‘dummy_hash’, salt: ‘dummy_salt’ }) throw new AuthenticationError(‘Invalid credentials’) }
const isValid = await verifyPassword({ password, hashedPassword: user.hashedPassword, salt: user.salt, })
if (!isValid) throw new AuthenticationError(‘Invalid credentials’)
return user }
Your RedwoodJS API
might be exposed to Broken User Authentication
74% of RedwoodJS apps fail this check. Hackers use automated scanners to find this specific flaw. Check your codebase before they do.
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