API Security resources

API security is crucial as APIs are a primary means through which systems communicate in today's interconnected digital ecosystem. Ensuring their security can prevent data breaches, unauthorized access, and other cyber threats. Here's a compilation of resources, covering various aspects of API security:

• Books:

  • "API Security in Action" by Neil Madden: This book provides a comprehensive look at various techniques and tools for securing APIs.

  • "OAuth 2 in Action" by Justin Richer and Antonio Sanso: Dive deep into the OAuth 2.0 framework which is widely used for API authorization.

  • “Threat Modeling: Designing for Security” by Adam Shostack: Find and fix security issues before they hurt you or your customers.

• Websites & Blogs:

  • OWASP (Open Web Application Security Project): OWASP maintains a list of top vulnerabilities, including those specific to API security.

  • APIsecurity.io by 42Crunch: This website has a weekly newsletter and news related to API vulnerabilities, breaches, and best practices.

• Online Courses & Tutorials:

  • Pluralsight: Offers various courses on API security.

  • PortSwigger: A learning path for testing APIs.

• Standards & Guidelines:

  • OAuth 2.0 and OIDC: They are the widely accepted standards for authorization and OpenID Connect respectively. Check out the official documentation and the OpenID Foundation website.

  • OWASP REST Security Cheat Sheet: Offers guidelines on securing REST APIs.

• Tools:

  • OWASP ZAP (Zed Attack Proxy): A popular tool for vulnerability testing, including APIs.

  • Postman: While it's primarily an API testing tool, it has features that can help ensure API endpoints are secure.

  • Swagger/OpenAPI: Helps in designing APIs with security in mind. You can use tools like Swagger UI and Redoc to visualize and interact with APIs.

  • Burp Suite: A widely-used tool for web security testing, it's also effective for API security assessments.

  • Open Source:

    • Swagger Jack: sj is a command line tool designed to assist with auditing of exposed Swagger/OpenAPI definition files by checking the associated API endpoints for weak authentication. It also provides command templates for manual vulnerability testing.

• Conferences & Workshops:

  • API World: Includes a segment on API security.

  • OWASP events: They often feature discussions and workshops centered on API security.

• Research Papers & Articles:

  • Google Scholar: Search for API security-related research papers to get in-depth knowledge on specific topics.

  • Arxiv.org: A free distribution service and an open-access archive for scholarly articles. You can find preprints related to API security.

  • Postman State of the API Report: A good yearly report to state up-to-date on the latest going on in the API landscape.

• Vulnerable APIs for practice:

  • vAPI: vAPI is Vulnerable Adversely Programmed Interface which is Self-Hostable API that mimics OWASP API Top 10 scenarios through Exercises.

  • VAmPI: Vulnerable REST API with OWASP top 10 vulnerabilities for security testing.

  • crAPI: completely ridiculous API (crAPI) will help you to understand the ten most critical API security risks. crAPI is vulnerable by design, but you'll be able to safely run it to educate/train yourself.

Always stay updated on the latest threats, vulnerabilities, and best practices. API security is an evolving field, and what's considered secure today might be vulnerable tomorrow. Regularly checking security news sources and forums can keep you in the loop.

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