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Diagrams: Security Basics

Back to concept

OWASP Top Risks for Python Developers

The most common web security vulnerabilities, ranked by how often they appear in Python projects.

flowchart TD
    subgraph INJECTION ["Injection Attacks"]
        SQL["SQL Injection<br/>User input in queries<br/>Fix: parameterized queries"]
        CMD["Command Injection<br/>User input in shell calls<br/>Fix: subprocess with list args"]
    end

    subgraph XSS_CSRF ["Cross-Site Attacks"]
        XSS["XSS<br/>Script in user content<br/>Fix: auto-escaping templates"]
        CSRF["CSRF<br/>Forged form submission<br/>Fix: CSRF tokens"]
    end

    subgraph AUTH_ISSUES ["Authentication Flaws"]
        WEAK["Weak Passwords<br/>No complexity rules<br/>Fix: bcrypt/argon2 hashing"]
        SESSION["Session Hijacking<br/>Stolen cookies<br/>Fix: HttpOnly, Secure flags"]
    end

    subgraph DATA_EXPOSURE ["Data Exposure"]
        SECRETS["Hardcoded Secrets<br/>API keys in source code<br/>Fix: environment variables"]
        PATH["Path Traversal<br/>../../etc/passwd<br/>Fix: resolve() + is_relative_to()"]
        LOGGING["Sensitive Data in Logs<br/>Passwords in log output<br/>Fix: never log secrets"]
    end

    subgraph SUPPLY ["Supply Chain"]
        DEPS["Vulnerable Dependencies<br/>Outdated packages<br/>Fix: pip audit regularly"]
    end

    style INJECTION fill:#ff6b6b,stroke:#c92a2a,color:#fff
    style XSS_CSRF fill:#ff922b,stroke:#e8590c,color:#fff
    style AUTH_ISSUES fill:#ffd43b,stroke:#f59f00,color:#000
    style DATA_EXPOSURE fill:#4a9eff,stroke:#2670c2,color:#fff
    style SUPPLY fill:#cc5de8,stroke:#9c36b5,color:#fff
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Input Sanitization Flow

Every piece of user input must be validated before it touches your application logic, database, or output.

flowchart TD
    INPUT["Raw User Input<br/>(form, URL, API body, file)"] --> VALIDATE{"Step 1: Validate<br/>Correct type and format?"}

    VALIDATE -->|"Invalid"| REJECT["Reject with clear error<br/>400 Bad Request"]
    VALIDATE -->|"Valid"| SANITIZE["Step 2: Sanitize<br/>Strip dangerous characters"]

    SANITIZE --> CONTEXT{"Where is this<br/>data going?"}

    CONTEXT -->|"Database"| DB_SAFE["Use parameterized queries<br/>cursor.execute(sql, (value,))"]
    CONTEXT -->|"HTML output"| HTML_SAFE["Auto-escape template<br/>Jinja2 escapes by default"]
    CONTEXT -->|"File path"| PATH_SAFE["Resolve and check<br/>path.is_relative_to(base)"]
    CONTEXT -->|"Shell command"| CMD_SAFE["Use subprocess with list<br/>Never pass raw strings"]
    CONTEXT -->|"JSON response"| JSON_SAFE["Serialize with json.dumps<br/>Auto-escapes special chars"]

    DB_SAFE --> SAFE["Data is safe"]
    HTML_SAFE --> SAFE
    PATH_SAFE --> SAFE
    CMD_SAFE --> SAFE
    JSON_SAFE --> SAFE

    style INPUT fill:#ff6b6b,stroke:#c92a2a,color:#fff
    style REJECT fill:#ff6b6b,stroke:#c92a2a,color:#fff
    style VALIDATE fill:#ffd43b,stroke:#f59f00,color:#000
    style SANITIZE fill:#ff922b,stroke:#e8590c,color:#fff
    style SAFE fill:#51cf66,stroke:#27ae60,color:#fff
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Authentication vs Authorization

Authentication proves WHO you are. Authorization determines WHAT you can do. They are separate steps.

sequenceDiagram
    participant User as User
    participant App as Application
    participant AuthN as Authentication<br/>(Who are you?)
    participant AuthZ as Authorization<br/>(What can you do?)
    participant Resource as Protected Resource

    User->>App: POST /login<br/>username + password

    App->>AuthN: Verify credentials
    Note over AuthN: Check password hash<br/>with bcrypt.checkpw()
    AuthN-->>App: Identity confirmed: alice (role: editor)

    Note over App: Create session/JWT token<br/>Include user ID and role

    App-->>User: 200 OK + token

    User->>App: GET /admin/users<br/>Authorization: Bearer token

    App->>AuthN: Verify token is valid
    AuthN-->>App: Token valid, user = alice

    App->>AuthZ: Can alice access /admin/users?
    Note over AuthZ: Check role: editor<br/>Required: admin

    AuthZ-->>App: DENIED

    App-->>User: 403 Forbidden<br/>You are logged in (authenticated)<br/>but not allowed (not authorized)

    User->>App: GET /articles<br/>Authorization: Bearer token

    App->>AuthN: Verify token
    AuthN-->>App: Token valid, user = alice

    App->>AuthZ: Can alice access /articles?
    Note over AuthZ: Check role: editor<br/>Required: editor or admin

    AuthZ-->>App: ALLOWED

    App->>Resource: Fetch articles
    Resource-->>App: Article data
    App-->>User: 200 OK + articles
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Secrets Management Decision Tree

Where and how to store secrets depends on your environment.

flowchart TD
    START["Where to store secrets?"] --> ENV{"What environment?"}

    ENV -->|"Local development"| DOTENV[".env file<br/>+ python-dotenv<br/>+ add to .gitignore"]
    ENV -->|"CI/CD pipeline"| CI_SECRETS["Pipeline secrets<br/>GitHub Secrets<br/>GitLab CI Variables"]
    ENV -->|"Production server"| PROD{"Scale?"}

    PROD -->|"Small/simple"| ENV_VARS["Environment variables<br/>Set in hosting platform<br/>(Railway, Heroku, etc.)"]
    PROD -->|"Large/enterprise"| VAULT["Secrets manager<br/>AWS Secrets Manager<br/>HashiCorp Vault"]

    subgraph NEVER ["NEVER DO THIS"]
        N1["Hardcode in source code"]
        N2["Commit .env to git"]
        N3["Log secrets to console"]
        N4["Send secrets in URL params"]
    end

    subgraph ALWAYS ["ALWAYS DO THIS"]
        A1["Add .env to .gitignore FIRST"]
        A2["Rotate exposed credentials"]
        A3["Use read-only tokens when possible"]
        A4["Audit access regularly"]
    end

    style DOTENV fill:#51cf66,stroke:#27ae60,color:#fff
    style CI_SECRETS fill:#4a9eff,stroke:#2670c2,color:#fff
    style ENV_VARS fill:#ff922b,stroke:#e8590c,color:#fff
    style VAULT fill:#cc5de8,stroke:#9c36b5,color:#fff
    style NEVER fill:#ff6b6b,stroke:#c92a2a,color:#fff
    style ALWAYS fill:#51cf66,stroke:#27ae60,color:#fff
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