Category:OWASP Enterprise Security API

Overview
Just as web applications and web services can be Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) enabled (PK-enabled) to perform for example certificate-based authentication, applications and services can be OWASP ESAPI-enabled (ES-enabled) to enable applications and services to protect themselves from attackers.

OWASP ESAPI Toolkits empower web application and web service developers with the ability to increase the overall degree of trust that can be placed in their applications and services. ESAPI Toolkit security controls operate using a deny-by-default strategy, performing security checks using white lists.

OWASP ESAPI Toolkits provide the same basic interfaces (including common logging interfaces) across common platforms, including Java EE, .NET, and PHP.

Why ESAPI?
Unfortunately, the available platforms, frameworks, and toolkits (Java EE, Struts, Spring, etc...) simply do not provide enough protection. This leaves developers with responsibility for designing and building security mechanisms. This reinventing the wheel for every application leads to wasted time and massive security holes.

The cost savings through reduced development time, and the increased security due to using heavily analyzed and carefully designed security methods provide developers with a massive advantage over organizations that are trying to deal with security using existing ad hoc secure coding techniques. This API is designed to automatically take care of many aspects of application security, making these issues invisible to the developers.

Where did ESAPI come from?
The OWASP ESAPI project is led by Jeff Williams, who serves as the volunteer chair of OWASP and is the CEO of Aspect Security. Jeff is a software developer who has specialized in application security since 1995. The ESAPI is the result of over a decade of code review and penetration testing of critical enterprise applications. If you'd like to volunteer to help on the project, you can contact him at jeff.williams@owasp.org.

More information about the ESAPI can be found in the ESAPI PowerPoint presentation

Architecture
The ESAPI architecture is very simple, just a collection of classes that encapsulate the key security operations most applications need. ESAPI is designed to make it easy to retrofit security into existing applications, as well as providing a solid foundation for new development. New development projects should consider integrating ESAPI into their framework to make even more of the security happen automatically. ESAPI comes with an ESAPI filter that minimizes the changes required to your base application.

The ESAPI covers most of the key security challenges facing application developers. ESAPI provides the capability for developers to create applications that are protected against almost all of the risks described in the OWASP Top Ten. Compare this coverage with automated scanning and static analysis tools, and then consider how your time is best spent.

http://owasp-esapi-java.googlecode.com/svn/trunk_doc/org/owasp/esapi/doc-files/OWASPTopTen.jpg

There are two key parts to the ESAPI:


 * A set of interfaces
 * A reference implementation

By using the ESAPI, applications across an organization will be easier to develop, more consistent, and easier to update in a single place. The use of the ESAPI will make it much easier for static analysis tools to verify an application, as the ESAPI calls can be built into the ruleset.

OWASP ESAPI Beta Downloads
Download free:

OWASP ESAPI

This release is the first public release and will undoubtably undergo significant revision over the coming months. We are seeking organizations willing to pilot this ESAPI and work with us to make this library better. Please contact jeff.williams@owasp.org for more information. If you're interested in application security, please join the OWASP ESAPI mailing list and help make ESAPI better!

Versions (archived source files are also available on the SVN under tags)

Additional Resources


 * Information regarding the ESAPI SVN can be found at the ESAPI Google Code repository.


 * If you have any problems with the ESAPI, please report them to the issues section.


 * The ESAPI Javadocs are located here.


 * For more information about the ESAPI, please view the ESAPI PowerPoint presentation.


 * If you are generating your own Javadocs for the ESAPI project, information regarding generation can be found here.

OWASP ESAPI Presentation Downloads
Download free:

About OWASP ESAPI


 * Project presentation (PowerPoint)
 * Video presentation (YouTube)
 * One Page Conference Handout (Word)

Changing/Building/Using the ESAPI
If you would like to work with the ESAPI source code, or build the project, please see here.

Using the ESAPI
If you want to see what the ESAPI is all about, and want to use the built-in implementations,
 * Download the latest version of the ESAPI JAR from above.
 * Add the ESAPI JAR to your project's build path.
 * The current ESAPI JAR has been built for Java 1.6, however support for Java 1.4.2+ is available. Please see here for information on building ESAPI for a different version of Java.
 * Use the ESAPI's Javadocs to take advantage of all the built-in functions of the ESAPI.

Running Demo App
The ESAPI Demo application has been named The ESAPI Swingset. More information about Swingset is available here.

Project Sponsors
The OWASP ESAPI project is sponsored by https://www.owasp.org/images/d/d1/Aspect_logo.gif

Licensing
This project licensed under the BSD license, which is very permissive and about as close to public domain as is possible. You can use or modify ESAPI however you want, even include it in commercial products.