Critical.
Authoritative.
Strategic.
Subscribe to CIO Magazine »

European security group issues warning on HTML5

ENISA is concerned that the latest draft of HTML5 might neglect some security issues

The European Union's computer security agency is warning that standards under development as part of HTML5 are undergoing rewrites that may neglect important security issues.

The European Network and Information Security Agency (ENISA) released on Monday a 61-page document analyzing HTML5, the latest specification for the Web's coding mother tongue.

HTML5 is curated by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). The organization is accepting comments on the latest draft of HTML5 until Tuesday, and ENISA finished its recommendations just a day ahead of the deadline.

"I think this is special in that it's the first time anyone has look at those suites of specifications together from a security point of view," said Giles Hogben, program manager for secure services at ENISA.

The HTML5 specifications are important, as application designers and Web developers will use them as a guide for years to come. The HTML4 specifications, for example, have been in use since 1999.

If the specifications for Web browsers are not up to snuff, it puts everyone from consumers to enterprise users at risk.

"Everybody is using a browser for everything these days," Hogben said. "It's really crucial."

ENISA look at 13 specifications within HTML5 and found 51 security issues. Some of the issues can be fixed by tweaking the specifications, while others are more risks based on the features that users should be alerted to, Hogben said. One of the features that concerns ENISA in the paper is termed "form tampering."

The HTML5 specification allows for the "submit" button for a Web-based form to be placed anywhere on a Web page. It means it would be possible for an attacker to inject other HTML onto the page, such as a different form button, and then cause the information in the form to be sent to the attacker rather than the legitimate website.

The new functionality "has benefits for developers," Hogben said. "We are not suggesting that W3C should take that feature out, it's just that users should be aware of the risks that it creates."

ENISA also made recommendations for how browsers should behave when a user, for example, is doing an online banking transaction. Users should use different browsers or at least have sandboxed sessions when using multiple tabs. A sandboxed browser session would avoid another tab -- which could contain an attack page -- take advantage of loose settings or permissions set for the whole browser application.

ENISA plans to send its recommendations to the individual W3C working groups, which will revise the specifications by January 2012.

Join the CIO Australia group on LinkedIn. The group is open to CIOs, IT Directors, COOs, CTOs and senior IT managers.

More about: etwork, W3C, World Wide Web Consortium
References show all

Comments

Post new comment

The content of this field is kept private and will not be shown publicly.
Users posting comments agree to the CIO comments policy.
Login or register to link comments to your user profile, or you may also post a comment without being logged in.
Related Coverage
Related Whitepapers
Latest Stories
Community Comments
Tags: applications, browsers, European Network and Information Security Agency, security, software
Latest Blog Posts
Whitepapers
  • Prepare Your Enterprise for the Mobile Revolution: Boost the Bottom Line with Mobile UC
    This white paper will highlight the changes in the mobile workplace; outline the benefits of unified communications (UC) and Fixed-Mobile Convergence (FMC) for mobile workers; identify the key market trends and business challenges IT managers must pay attention to now and into the future; and offer best practices for choosing a solution that will deliver clear ROI.
    Learn more »
  • Top Reasons to Implement an SOA Governance Strategy: A List for IT Executives
    Service-oriented architecture (SOA) has moved beyond hype to widespread acceptance as an IT strategy for delivering business value. SOA promotes the notion of modularity, providing overwhelming flexibility and superior economics for addressing business demands. However, undertaking the transformation to SOA is not without its challenges. If left unchecked, your inventory of SOA assets will become unmanageable; the reuse of services will diminish in favor of custom development; or even worse, modifications will be made to your existing services that break other business processes. The purpose of SOA governance is to help you ensure that this does not happen. This paper outlines the most compelling reasons for you to establish SOA governance within your organization.
    Learn more »
  • Optimizing Data Quality in the Enterprise - How to Tackle Your Bad Information
    Data quality – the measure of data accuracy, completeness, and consistency across a business – has become the core focus of information management efforts among many of today’s organizations. Problems with data quality continue to plague corporations of all types and sizes. In this paper, we will discuss some techniques companies can implement to enhance data quality across the entire enterprise. We will also highlight data quality management solutions, which provide businesses with the ability to effectively and economically enhance the correctness, completeness, and consistency of information in each and every system within their technology infrastructure.
    Learn more »
All whitepapers
rhs_login_lockGet exclusive access to Invitation only events CIO, reports & analysis.
Recent comments