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How to Secure Your GraphQL API with These 10 Unbeatable Practices?

Updated Date: Aug 29, 2024
How to Secure Your GraphQL API

Summary: GraphQL APIs excel in efficiently managing client queries and ensuring streamlined communication between client and server sides of applications. But their security is often compromised due to certain challenges. In this article, we’ve curated fail-safe practices to keep your graphQL security robust by beating these challenges and maintaining its effectiveness.

GraphQL APIs are the bridge between the app’s frontend and backend. Their responsibility is to maintain smooth communication between client-side and server side of apps by enabling them to request and receive the required data through the server. Since graphQL APIs are one step ahead in fulfilling client’s requirements with their customized approach to fetch data, there are certain security challenges graphQL APIs undergo, though.

Hence, we are here to shed light on top 10 graphQL security practices that ensure your graphQL APIs are shielded from possible cybersecurity threats.

Let’s begin unfolding the insights of this guide to make your graphQL security robust and keep data exploitation risks at bay.

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Table of Contents
  1. What is GraphQL API?
  2. 5 Significant Challenges to Combat in GraphQL API Security
  3. 10 Security Practices for Robust GraphQL API Security
  4. How ZeroThreat SafeGuards Your APIs?

What is GraphQL API?

GraphQL APIs are like customized menus for the applications. They enable applications to only request the data that is actually required, which makes the whole process relatively straightforward and saves lots of time.

With graphQL, you get all the requirements fulfilled in one go. All you need to do is to submit a single query that mentions all your requirements, and you’ll get the optimum results from the server.

5 Challenges to Overcome in GraphQL API Security

Securing graphQL API is quite a painstaking process. Below, we have stated certain challenges you may come across while considering security measures.

1. Overfetching and Underfetching

In traditional REST APIs, endpoints return fixed data structures. But when we talk about graphQL APIs, they are flexible enough to enable clients to get clients exactly what they enquired for. This flexibility sometimes comes as a challenge, as it can lead to overfetching or underfetching of the data, which can have an adverse impact on graphQL’s security.

2. N+1 Query Problem

GraphQL’s attribute to fulfill nested fields in a single query can trigger other database queries sometimes. In such cases, attackers can misuse the repercussions that graphQL’s flexibility offers, so finding a middle ground is sometimes challenging.

3. Complexity of Authorization

Field-level authorization is known for providing fine-grained control over data accessibility. Thus, managing and executing complex authorization rules with graphQL schema is not a cakewalk. Especially, when we are aware of the fact that schema keeps on evolving over a period of time.

4. Client-side Security

Again, graphQL’s feature of allowing for complex data requirements through a single query makes it complicated to implement security policies on the client side. Making sure that client’s request comes from an authorized source to prevent injection attacks calls for careful validation and sanitization of client-supplied input.

5. Versioning and Deprecation

Management of versioning and deprecation in a graphQL schema can welcome potential security challenges. Deprecated fields can still be found accessible to clients. This can create security risks because it could expose outdated or insecure data.

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10 Security Practices for Steadfast GraphQL API

Behind every robust graphQL security, there are high-powered security practices to safeguard graphQL APIs from data exploitation.

Top 10 Security Practices for GraphQL API

1. Authentication and Authorization

Implementation of robust authentication mechanisms which verify the authenticity of client’s identity accessing the API. Moreover, implement authorization techniques that ensure the user is reliable then only he can access particular data. Avail techniques like JSON Web Tokens or OAuth for authentication and role-based access control for authorization.

2. Input Validation and Sanitization

Consider validating and sanitizing the input data to eliminate security threats like injection attacks. Moreover, ensure that the data aligns with the expected schema defined in the graphQL schema. It’s no less than fitting a piece of the puzzle that actually belongs to the empty space of the same. You can also opt for the specific tools that automatically carry out the process of data input validation and sanitization.

3. Query Whitelisting

For the sake of fulfilling requirements, you cannot accept irrelevant queries. Whitelisting queries is indispensable; in order to maintain relevancy, you need to restrict access to only permitted operations. This will protect you from unauthorized queries and malicious attackers.

4. Rate Limiting

Enable rate limiting to alleviate the threat of DoS (Denial of Service) attacks and prevent the exploitation of API by restricting the number of requests that can be made in a particular frame of time.

5. Monitoring and Logging

Monitoring the usage of API and log activities is a prerequisite for detecting potential threats or data breaches in real time. Logging must include comprehensive information about the incoming clients’ requests, such as IP addresses, response status, and request payloads.

6. TLS Encryption

The occurrence of communication between clients and graphQL is pretty confidential; a breach of such sensitive communication can cost you dearly. Ensuring the entire communication is encrypted by using TLS (Transport Layer Security), which prevents the data from breaching.

7. Schema Stitching and Federation

If it calls for combining multiple graphQL schemas using schema stitching and federation, it’s imperative for you to verify details from your end and make sure there is no exposure of confidential information or accidental allowance to any external resource.

8. Input Validation Middleware

Utilize input data validation middleware or libraries to validate and sanitize input data before handling graphQL queries. This relatively helps reduce the risks related to data breaches, malware attacks, and security vulnerabilities like XSS (Cross-site Scripting) or injection attacks.

9. Content-Type Validation

Validate the content-type header of incoming requests to confirm that the requests are systematically formatted as JSON. With content-type validation, you can easily exclude the requests that you find invalid and avoid the risk of potential vulnerabilities.

10. Field Level Authorization

When you are working with graphQL, the implementation of fine-grained authorization controls at field levels within graphQL schema helps you restrict access to confidential or privileged data on the basis of users’ roles and responsibilities. It confirms that only authorized users can access the data.

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How ZeroThreat SafeGuards Your APIs?

GraphQL APIs offer a notable level of customized experience other than traditional REST and SOAP APIs. However, securing the same with robust techniques is a must, or else you can see its security compromised, which can cause massive loss.

Hence, we have brought you this article, which enlightens you about potential challenges and infallible security practices that leave no room for possible vulnerabilities and exposures.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What are the top graphQL security tools?

Here we are listing down 10 most used tools for graphQL security:

  • ZeroThreat
  • GraphQL Shield
  • WAF for GraphQL
  • Insomnia
  • GraphQL Inspector
  • GraphQL.Security
  • BatchQL
  • InQL
  • GraphQL Authz
  • GraphQL Armor

What is the difference between GraphQL API and REST API?

What are the common attacks on graphQL?

Why is GraphQl security important?