API vulnerability is one of the leading attack vectors in modern application security. Ensuring your REST APIs are properly shielded against injections, token hijacks, and rate abuse is non-negotiable.
1. Modern Authorization (JWT & OAuth2)
Do not store session states on servers. Use JSON Web Tokens (JWT) signed with secure asymmetric keys (RS256). Ensure token expirations are short (under 15 minutes) and utilize secure HttpOnly HTTP cookies for token storage rather than localStorage.
2. IP and Token Rate Limiting
Protect your endpoints against Brute Force and DDoS attacks. Set up rate-limiting rules (e.g., maximum 60 requests per minute per IP address) at the reverse-proxy level (NGINX/Cloudflare) and inside the framework middleware.
3. Payload Validation and Sanitization
Never trust user input. Validate incoming payloads using strict validation schemas. Sanitize string inputs to eliminate SQL Injection and Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) risks before writing data to database servers.