- Security Architecture
- Electron Security Best Practices
- PDF Security Features
- Data Protection
- Authentication & Authorization
- Secure Communication
- Security Checklist
- Incident Response
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Security Layers │
├───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Layer 1: Process Isolation (Sandboxing) │
│ Layer 2: Context Isolation (IPC Security) │
│ Layer 3: Content Security Policy (CSP) │
│ Layer 4: Input Validation & Sanitization │
│ Layer 5: Encryption & Cryptography │
│ Layer 6: Access Control & Permissions │
│ Layer 7: Audit Logging & Monitoring │
└───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
The following table describes the threats that the Professional PDF Editor is exposed to and the mitigation strategies that are in place to address them.
| Threat | Risk Level | Mitigation |
|---|---|---|
| Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) | High | The application uses a strict Content Security Policy (CSP) to prevent XSS attacks. The application also uses a context-aware output encoding system to encode all output. |
| Code Injection | High | The application disables Node.js integration in the renderer process to prevent code injection attacks. The application also validates all input to prevent malicious code from being executed. |
| PDF Malware | Medium | The application uses a sandboxing mechanism to isolate the PDF rendering process from the rest of the application. The application also validates all PDF files to prevent malicious PDF files from being opened. |
| Data Exfiltration | Medium | The application uses encryption to protect sensitive data at rest and in transit. The application also uses a role-based access control (RBAC) system to restrict access to sensitive data. |
| Man-in-the-Middle (MITM) Attacks | Low | The application uses HTTPS to encrypt all network communications. The application also uses certificate pinning to prevent MITM attacks. |
| Supply Chain Attacks | Medium | The application uses a dependency auditing tool to scan for vulnerable dependencies. The application also uses a lock file to ensure that the same dependencies are used in all environments. |
| AI Model Poisoning | Medium | The AI models are trained on a diverse and curated dataset to prevent model poisoning attacks. The AI models are also designed to be resilient to adversarial attacks. |
| AI Model Evasion | Medium | The AI models are tested extensively to ensure that they are robust and that they do not produce harmful or unexpected results. The AI models are also designed to be resilient to adversarial attacks. |
The application should follow these Electron security best practices:
- Context Isolation: Enable context isolation to prevent renderer processes from accessing Node.js APIs.
- Node.js Integration: Disable Node.js integration in the renderer process.
- Sandbox: Enable the sandbox for all renderer processes.
- Content Security Policy (CSP): Implement a strict CSP to prevent XSS attacks.
- IPC Communication: Use a secure IPC communication channel between the main and renderer processes.
- Remote Module: Do not use the deprecated
remotemodule. - Protocol Security: Register secure protocol schemes and validate URLs.
The application should provide the following PDF security features:
- PDF Encryption: Encrypt sensitive PDFs with a strong password.
- Digital Signatures: Add and verify digital signatures.
- Redaction: Permanently remove sensitive content from PDFs.
The Professional PDF Editor uses AI to provide a number of features, such as OCR and document analysis. The security of these AI features is a top priority.
The AI features in the Professional PDF Editor are designed to be ethical and responsible. The AI models are trained on a diverse dataset to ensure that they are fair and unbiased. The AI models are also designed to be transparent and explainable, so that users can understand how they work.
The AI features in the Professional PDF Editor are designed to be safe and reliable. The AI models are tested extensively to ensure that they are robust and that they do not produce harmful or unexpected results. The AI models are also designed to be resilient to adversarial attacks.
Encrypt sensitive data stored locally.
// Secure storage implementation
import * as crypto from 'crypto';
class SecureStorage {
private algorithm = 'aes-256-gcm';
private keyDerivationIterations = 100000;
async encryptData(data: any, password: string): Promise<EncryptedData> {
// Derive key from password
const salt = crypto.randomBytes(32);
const key = crypto.pbkdf2Sync(
password,
salt,
this.keyDerivationIterations,
32,
'sha256'
);
// Encrypt data
const iv = crypto.randomBytes(16);
const cipher = crypto.createCipheriv(this.algorithm, key, iv);
const encrypted = Buffer.concat([
cipher.update(JSON.stringify(data), 'utf8'),
cipher.final()
]);
const authTag = cipher.getAuthTag();
return {
encrypted: encrypted.toString('base64'),
salt: salt.toString('base64'),
iv: iv.toString('base64'),
authTag: authTag.toString('base64')
};
}
async decryptData(
encryptedData: EncryptedData,
password: string
): Promise<any> {
// Derive key from password
const salt = Buffer.from(encryptedData.salt, 'base64');
const key = crypto.pbkdf2Sync(
password,
salt,
this.keyDerivationIterations,
32,
'sha256'
);
// Decrypt data
const iv = Buffer.from(encryptedData.iv, 'base64');
const authTag = Buffer.from(encryptedData.authTag, 'base64');
const decipher = crypto.createDecipheriv(this.algorithm, key, iv);
decipher.setAuthTag(authTag);
const decrypted = Buffer.concat([
decipher.update(Buffer.from(encryptedData.encrypted, 'base64')),
decipher.final()
]);
return JSON.parse(decrypted.toString('utf8'));
}
}Use HTTPS for all network communications.
// Secure API client
class SecureAPIClient {
private baseURL: string;
private certificatePinning: boolean;
constructor(baseURL: string, options?: APIClientOptions) {
this.baseURL = baseURL;
this.certificatePinning = options?.certificatePinning ?? true;
}
async request(endpoint: string, options: RequestOptions): Promise<any> {
const url = new URL(endpoint, this.baseURL);
// Enforce HTTPS
if (url.protocol !== 'https:') {
throw new Error('HTTPS required for API requests');
}
// Configure secure request
const requestOptions: https.RequestOptions = {
method: options.method || 'GET',
headers: {
...options.headers,
'X-Request-ID': this.generateRequestId(),
'X-Client-Version': app.getVersion()
},
// Certificate pinning
checkServerIdentity: this.certificatePinning
? this.verifyServerCertificate.bind(this)
: undefined,
// Timeouts
timeout: options.timeout || 30000
};
return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
const req = https.request(url, requestOptions, (res) => {
// Handle response
let data = '';
res.on('data', chunk => data += chunk);
res.on('end', () => {
if (res.statusCode >= 200 && res.statusCode < 300) {
resolve(JSON.parse(data));
} else {
reject(new Error(`HTTP ${res.statusCode}: ${data}`));
}
});
});
req.on('error', reject);
req.on('timeout', () => reject(new Error('Request timeout')));
if (options.body) {
req.write(JSON.stringify(options.body));
}
req.end();
});
}
private verifyServerCertificate(
hostname: string,
cert: PeerCertificate
): Error | undefined {
// Implement certificate pinning
const expectedFingerprint = this.getExpectedFingerprint(hostname);
if (cert.fingerprint !== expectedFingerprint) {
return new Error('Certificate verification failed');
}
return undefined;
}
}Clear sensitive data from memory.
// Secure memory handling
class SecureMemory {
// Use WeakMap to allow garbage collection
private sensitiveData = new WeakMap<object, any>();
store(key: object, value: any): void {
// Store sensitive data
this.sensitiveData.set(key, value);
}
retrieve(key: object): any {
return this.sensitiveData.get(key);
}
clear(key: object): void {
// Clear from memory
const data = this.sensitiveData.get(key);
if (data) {
// Overwrite memory if it's a buffer
if (Buffer.isBuffer(data)) {
data.fill(0);
} else if (typeof data === 'string') {
// Strings are immutable, best we can do is remove reference
this.sensitiveData.delete(key);
} else if (typeof data === 'object') {
// Clear object properties
Object.keys(data).forEach(prop => {
data[prop] = null;
});
this.sensitiveData.delete(key);
}
}
}
clearAll(): void {
// Note: WeakMap doesn't provide iteration
// References will be garbage collected
this.sensitiveData = new WeakMap();
// Force garbage collection if available
if (global.gc) {
global.gc();
}
}
}// Authentication service
class AuthenticationService {
private sessionTimeout = 30 * 60 * 1000; // 30 minutes
private maxLoginAttempts = 5;
private lockoutDuration = 15 * 60 * 1000; // 15 minutes
async authenticate(
username: string,
password: string
): Promise<AuthResult> {
try {
// Check lockout
if (this.isLockedOut(username)) {
throw new Error('Account temporarily locked');
}
// Validate credentials
const user = await this.validateCredentials(username, password);
if (!user) {
this.recordFailedAttempt(username);
throw new Error('Invalid credentials');
}
// Generate session token
const token = this.generateSecureToken();
const session = {
userId: user.id,
token,
createdAt: Date.now(),
expiresAt: Date.now() + this.sessionTimeout
};
// Store session securely
await this.storeSession(session);
// Clear failed attempts
this.clearFailedAttempts(username);
return {
success: true,
user,
token
};
} catch (error) {
logger.error('Authentication failed', error);
return {
success: false,
error: error.message
};
}
}
private generateSecureToken(): string {
return crypto.randomBytes(32).toString('base64url');
}
private async validateCredentials(
username: string,
password: string
): Promise<User | null> {
// Hash password with salt
const user = await this.getUserByUsername(username);
if (!user) return null;
const passwordHash = crypto.pbkdf2Sync(
password,
user.salt,
100000,
64,
'sha512'
).toString('hex');
return passwordHash === user.passwordHash ? user : null;
}
}// RBAC implementation
class AuthorizationService {
private permissions = new Map<string, Set<string>>([
['admin', new Set(['read', 'write', 'delete', 'admin'])],
['editor', new Set(['read', 'write'])],
['viewer', new Set(['read'])],
['guest', new Set([])]
]);
hasPermission(
user: User,
resource: string,
action: string
): boolean {
// Check user role permissions
const userPermissions = this.permissions.get(user.role);
if (!userPermissions) return false;
// Check specific permission
const permission = `${resource}:${action}`;
if (userPermissions.has(permission)) return true;
// Check wildcard permissions
if (userPermissions.has(`${resource}:*`)) return true;
if (userPermissions.has(`*:${action}`)) return true;
if (userPermissions.has('*:*')) return true;
return false;
}
requirePermission(
permission: string
): (req: Request, res: Response, next: NextFunction) => void {
return (req, res, next) => {
const user = req.user;
if (!user) {
return res.status(401).json({ error: 'Unauthorized' });
}
const [resource, action] = permission.split(':');
if (!this.hasPermission(user, resource, action)) {
return res.status(403).json({ error: 'Forbidden' });
}
next();
};
}
}// Secure WebSocket implementation
class SecureWebSocket {
private ws: WebSocket;
private encryptionKey: CryptoKey;
async connect(url: string, token: string): Promise<void> {
// Validate URL
const wsUrl = new URL(url);
if (wsUrl.protocol !== 'wss:') {
throw new Error('Secure WebSocket (wss://) required');
}
// Generate encryption key for this session
this.encryptionKey = await crypto.subtle.generateKey(
{ name: 'AES-GCM', length: 256 },
true,
['encrypt', 'decrypt']
);
// Connect with authentication
this.ws = new WebSocket(url, {
headers: {
'Authorization': `Bearer ${token}`,
'X-Client-Version': app.getVersion()
}
});
this.ws.on('message', this.handleMessage.bind(this));
this.ws.on('error', this.handleError.bind(this));
}
async sendSecure(data: any): Promise<void> {
// Encrypt message
const encrypted = await this.encryptMessage(data);
// Send encrypted data
this.ws.send(JSON.stringify({
type: 'encrypted',
data: encrypted
}));
}
private async encryptMessage(data: any): Promise<EncryptedMessage> {
const iv = crypto.getRandomValues(new Uint8Array(12));
const encoded = new TextEncoder().encode(JSON.stringify(data));
const encrypted = await crypto.subtle.encrypt(
{ name: 'AES-GCM', iv },
this.encryptionKey,
encoded
);
return {
data: Buffer.from(encrypted).toString('base64'),
iv: Buffer.from(iv).toString('base64')
};
}
}- Enable context isolation in all windows
- Disable Node.js integration in renderers
- Implement CSP headers
- Use HTTPS for all external communications
- Validate and sanitize all inputs
- Implement secure IPC communication
- Use environment variables for sensitive config
- Audit npm dependencies regularly
- Enable security linting rules
- Implement proper error handling
- Perform security testing
- Run vulnerability scans
- Test input validation
- Verify CSP implementation
- Test authentication flows
- Verify encryption implementation
- Test error handling
- Perform penetration testing
- Review security logs
- Test update mechanism
- Remove development tools
- Disable debugging features
- Set production environment variables
- Enable ASLR (Address Space Layout Randomization)
- Sign application binaries
- Implement auto-updates
- Set up security monitoring
- Configure logging
- Prepare incident response plan
- Document security procedures
- Monitor security advisories
- Update dependencies regularly
- Review security logs
- Perform regular security audits
- Update threat model
- Train development team
- Review and update security policies
- Test backup and recovery
- Conduct security drills
- Maintain security documentation
-
Detection & Analysis
- Monitor security logs
- Analyze suspicious activity
- Determine incident severity
- Document initial findings
-
Containment
- Isolate affected systems
- Preserve evidence
- Prevent further damage
- Implement temporary fixes
-
Eradication
- Remove malicious code
- Patch vulnerabilities
- Update security controls
- Verify system integrity
-
Recovery
- Restore normal operations
- Monitor for recurrence
- Validate security measures
- Document lessons learned
-
Post-Incident
- Conduct post-mortem
- Update security policies
- Improve detection capabilities
- Train team on findings
| Role | Contact | Responsibility |
|---|---|---|
| Security Lead | security@pdfeditor.com | Overall security |
| Incident Response | incident@pdfeditor.com | Security incidents |
| Privacy Officer | privacy@pdfeditor.com | Data protection |
| Legal Counsel | legal@pdfeditor.com | Legal matters |
This security guide provides comprehensive security practices for the Professional PDF Editor application. Regular review and updates of these practices are essential to maintain security posture.