## Section 1: Introduction to ZAP Proxy on Kali Linux
### 1.1 Overview of ZAP Proxy
OWASP ZAP (Zed Attack Proxy) is one of the most widely-used open-source web application security testing tools. It is designed to help find vulnerabilities in web applications during the development and testing phases. ZAP provides automated scanners as well as various tools to assist in manual testing, making it an invaluable addition to any ethical hacker’s toolkit.
In this section, we will cover the installation and configuration of ZAP Proxy on Kali Linux, followed by a deep dive into its functionalities, step-by-step usage, and practical use cases, particularly for web applications like WordPress.
### 1.2 Installation and Configuration on Kali Linux
#### 1.2.1 Prerequisites
Before you begin the installation, ensure you have Kali Linux installed on your machine. ZAP is included in the Kali Linux repository, making it easy to install via the command line.
#### 1.2.2 Installing ZAP Proxy
To install ZAP Proxy, open your terminal and run the following command:
"`bash
sudo apt update
sudo apt install zaproxy
"`
This command will download and install the latest version of ZAP Proxy available in the Kali Linux repositories.
#### 1.2.3 Launching ZAP Proxy
Once the installation is complete, you can start ZAP Proxy by entering the following command in your terminal:
"`bash
zaproxy
"`
Alternatively, you can find ZAP Proxy in the applications menu under "Web Application Analysis."
#### 1.2.4 Initial Configuration
When you first launch ZAP, you will be greeted with a setup wizard. Here is what you need to configure:
1. **Choose a Local Proxy**: By default, ZAP uses localhost with port 8080. Ensure this is set correctly.
2. **Select the API Key**: The API key is essential for accessing ZAP programmatically. You can choose to enable it and set a password, or you can opt to skip this step for now.
3. **Choose a Session**: You can start a new session or load an existing one. For the purpose of this course, you should start a new session.
After configuration, you will be presented with the ZAP user interface, which consists of several panels and menus.
### 1.3 Step-by-Step Usage and Real-World Use Cases
#### 1.3.1 Setting Up a Target
For demonstration purposes, we will use a local instance of WordPress as our target application. Ensure you have WordPress installed on your local server (for instance, using XAMPP or LAMP).
1. Open ZAP Proxy and navigate to the "Quick Start" tab.
2. In the "URL to Attack" field, enter the URL of your local WordPress instance, such as `http://127.0.0.1/wordpress`.
3. Click the "Attack" button.
ZAP will start scanning for vulnerabilities. It will spider the application to enumerate all the accessible links and resources.
#### 1.3.2 Automated Scanning
– **Active Scanning**: Once the spidering is complete, right-click on your target URL in the Sites tree panel, and select “Attack” > “Active Scan.”
– ZAP will now conduct a more thorough analysis, probing for vulnerabilities such as SQL Injection, Cross-Site Scripting (XSS), and more.
#### 1.3.3 Manual Testing
Manual testing is an essential part of the pentesting process. Here’s how to use ZAP for manual testing:
1. **Intercepting Traffic**:
– Configure your browser to route traffic through ZAP. Set the browser proxy settings to `localhost:8080`.
– In ZAP, enable the "Intercept" feature to monitor and modify requests.
2. **Fuzzing Input Fields**:
– Go to a form on your WordPress site.
– Right-click on the request in the "History" tab and select “Fuzz.”
– You can now provide a payload list that ZAP will use to test input fields for vulnerabilities.
#### 1.3.4 Generating Reports
After scanning, ZAP allows you to generate detailed reports:
1. Go to the "Report" menu.
2. You can create an HTML report, XML report, or markdown report depending on your needs.
3. Save the report for documentation and future reference.
### 1.4 Detailed Technical Explanations
#### 1.4.1 Understanding the ZAP Interface
– **Sites Panel**: Displays all the sites ZAP has interacted with. You can see the structure of your target application here.
– **Alerts Panel**: Lists detected vulnerabilities with severity levels. Each alert provides details about the vulnerability, potential impacts, and recommended solutions.
– **Request/Response Panel**: Displays raw HTTP requests and responses which allow you to analyze or modify the traffic.
#### 1.4.2 Key Features of ZAP
– **API Access**: ZAP exposes a REST API, allowing you to automate tests and integrate with CI/CD pipelines. You can use tools like `curl` or Postman to interact with the API.
"`bash
curl -X GET "http://localhost:8080/JSON/core/view/hosts/"
"`
– **Scripting**: ZAP supports scripting in various languages, including JavaScript, Python, and Groovy. You can write custom scripts to automate actions or extend ZAP’s functionality.
#### 1.4.3 Common Vulnerabilities Detected by ZAP
– **SQL Injection**: A vulnerability that allows attackers to interfere with the queries sent to the database. ZAP uses various techniques to identify points where SQL injections can occur.
– **Cross-Site Scripting (XSS)**: This vulnerability allows attackers to inject client-side scripts into web pages viewed by users. ZAP attempts to inject malicious scripts into input fields to check for vulnerability.
– **Insecure Direct Object References**: ZAP can detect when web pages expose sensitive information, such as user IDs or file paths, through URL manipulation.
### 1.5 External Reference Links
– [OWASP ZAP Official Documentation](https://www.zaproxy.org/documentation/)
– [OWASP Top Ten](https://owasp.org/www-project-top-ten/)
– [Kali Linux Documentation](https://www.kali.org/docs/)
– [WordPress Vulnerabilities](https://wpvulndb.com/)
### 1.6 Code Examples for WordPress
To showcase how ZAP can be used to test for specific vulnerabilities in WordPress, here are examples of payloads and scripts:
#### 1.6.1 SQL Injection Payload
You can use the following common SQL injection payloads:
"`sql
' OR '1'='1
' UNION SELECT NULL, username, password FROM users–
"`
#### 1.6.2 XSS Payload
For testing XSS, you can use:
"`html
"`
1. Insert the payload in input fields and observe the response.
### Conclusion
By understanding how to install and configure ZAP Proxy, along with its extensive features for both automated and manual testing, you can effectively assess the security of web applications like WordPress. In future sections, we will cover more advanced techniques and integrations that ZAP can offer for comprehensive web application security assessments.
Made by pablo rotem / פבלו רותם