wstg-sess-06
Test ID
WSTG-SESS-06
Test Name
Testing for Logout Functionality
High-Level Description
Logout functionality must properly terminate user sessions by invalidating session tokens on the server side. Improper logout implementation can allow continued access using old session tokens, session replay attacks, or leave users vulnerable if using shared computers.
What to Check
- Server-side session invalidation
- Client-side token clearing
- "Remember me" token revocation
- All sessions logout (multi-device)
- Browser cache clearing
- Redirect after logout
How to Test
Step 1: Test Session Invalidation
#!/bin/bash
TARGET="https://target.com"
# Get authenticated session
session=$(curl -s -c - -X POST "$TARGET/login" \
-d "username=test&password=test" | grep -oP "SESSIONID=\K[^;]+")
echo "Session: $session"
# Verify authenticated
curl -s -b "SESSIONID=$session" "$TARGET/dashboard" | grep -q "Welcome" && \
echo "[OK] Session authenticated"
# Logout
curl -s -b "SESSIONID=$session" "$TARGET/logout"
# Try to use old session
response=$(curl -s -b "SESSIONID=$session" "$TARGET/dashboard")
if echo "$response" | grep -q "Welcome"; then
echo "[VULN] Session still valid after logout!"
else
echo "[OK] Session properly invalidated"
fi
Step 2: Test Back Button After Logout
# After logout, cached pages should not be accessible
# Check Cache-Control headers on authenticated pages
curl -sI -b "session=valid" "https://target.com/dashboard" | \
grep -iE "cache-control|pragma"
# Should include: no-store, no-cache, must-revalidate
Step 3: Session Invalidation Tester
#!/usr/bin/env python3
import requests
import time
class LogoutTester:
def __init__(self, base_url):
self.base_url = base_url
self.findings = []
def test_logout(self, login_creds, protected_page, logout_endpoint):
"""Test complete logout functionality"""
print("[*] Testing logout functionality...")
# Login
session = requests.Session()
session.post(f"{self.base_url}/login", data=login_creds)
# Get session cookie
original_cookies = dict(session.cookies)
print(f"Session established: {list(original_cookies.keys())}")
# Verify authenticated
response = session.get(f"{self.base_url}{protected_page}")
if response.status_code != 200:
print("[!] Could not authenticate")
return
# Logout
session.get(f"{self.base_url}{logout_endpoint}")
print("Logout request sent")
# Test 1: Same session access
print("\n[1] Testing session after logout...")
new_session = requests.Session()
for name, value in original_cookies.items():
new_session.cookies.set(name, value)
response = new_session.get(f"{self.base_url}{protected_page}")
if response.status_code == 200 and 'login' not in response.url.lower():
print("[VULN] Session still valid after logout!")
self.findings.append({
"issue": "Session not invalidated",
"severity": "High"
})
else:
print("[OK] Session properly invalidated")
# Test 2: Check cache headers
print("\n[2] Checking cache headers...")
self._check_cache_headers(protected_page)
return self.findings
def _check_cache_headers(self, protected_page):
"""Check if cache headers prevent storing"""
session = requests.Session()
response = session.get(f"{self.base_url}{protected_page}")
cache_control = response.headers.get('Cache-Control', '')
if 'no-store' in cache_control.lower():
print("[OK] no-store header present")
else:
print("[WARN] Missing no-store - pages may be cached")
self.findings.append({
"issue": "Missing no-store cache header",
"severity": "Medium"
})
# Usage
tester = LogoutTester("https://target.com")
tester.test_logout(
{"username": "test", "password": "test"},
"/dashboard",
"/logout"
)
Remediation Guide
Proper Logout Implementation
from flask import session, redirect
@app.route('/logout')
def logout():
# Clear server-side session
session_id = session.get('id')
if session_id:
SessionStore.delete(session_id)
# Clear all session data
session.clear()
# Create response with cache headers
response = redirect('/login')
response.headers['Cache-Control'] = 'no-store, no-cache, must-revalidate, private'
response.headers['Pragma'] = 'no-cache'
# Clear session cookie
response.delete_cookie('session')
return response
Risk Assessment
| Finding | CVSS | Severity |
|---|---|---|
| Session valid after logout | 6.5 | Medium |
| Missing cache headers | 4.3 | Medium |
| No server-side invalidation | 7.5 | High |
CWE Categories
| CWE ID | Title |
|---|---|
| CWE-613 | Insufficient Session Expiration |
Checklist
[ ] Server-side invalidation tested
[ ] Old session token tested post-logout
[ ] Cache headers checked
[ ] All sessions logout tested
[ ] Cookie clearing verified
[ ] Findings documented