Classification of Component Vulnerabilities in Java Service Oriented Programming (SOP) Platforms

Java-based systems have evolved from stand-alone applications to multi-component to Service Oriented Programming (SOP) platforms. Each step of this evolution makes a set of Java vulnerabilities directly exploitable by malicious code: access to classes in multi-component platforms, and access to object in SOP, is granted to them with often no control.

This paper defines two taxonomies that characterize vulnerabilities in Java components: the vulnerability categories, and the goals of the attacks that are based on these vulnerabilities. The ‘vulnerability category’ taxonomy is based on three application types: stand-alone, class sharing, and SOP. Entries express the absence of proper security features at places they are required to build secure component-based systems. The ‘goal’ taxonomy is based on the distinction between undue access, which encompasses the traditional integrity and confidentiality security properties, and denial-of-service. It provides a matching between the vulnerability categories and their consequences. The exploitability of each vulnerability is validated through the development of a pair of malicious and vulnerable components. Experiments are conducted in the context of the OSGi Platform. Based on the vulnerability taxonomies, recommendations for writing hardened component code are issued.