XSRF/CSRF example

Let's see an example of a simple controller that may be susceptible to an XSRF/CSRF attack.

At first glance, everything feels safe and secure but, in the following, we'll see how a controller with code such as this can be mouthwatering to an XSRF/CSRF hacker:

public class ContactController : Controller
{
   public ViewResult ContactDetails()
   { return View(); }
   public ViewResult Update()
   {
      Contact contact = DbContext.GetContact();
      contact.ContactId = Request.Form["ContactId"];
      contact.Name = Request.Form["Name"];
      SaveContact(contact);
      return View();
   }
}

Consider a scenario where a hacker sets up a page that deliberately targets this kind of controller. The hacker can then persuade a user to visit their page, which will then try to post to this controller. This controller will not be able to pick up the intended XSRF/CSRF attack when the user has already been authenticated via forms-based authentication or Windows authentication. See the following code:

<body onload="document.getElementById('contactForm').submit()">
  <form id="contactForm" action="http://.../Contact/Update" 
    method="post">
   <input name="ContactId" value="123456" />
   <input name="Name" value="My Hack Example" />
  </form>
 </body>

This kind of attack is mitigated in different ways, as elaborated on in the next section.

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Table of Contents for
XSRF/CSRF example