security.md•16.2 kB
# Security Considerations
[TOC]
This document outlines the security architecture, practices, and considerations for the MCP Online Platform. Security is a critical aspect of the platform as it handles sensitive user credentials and provides access to potentially confidential data through MCP services.
## Security Architecture Overview
The security architecture of the MCP Online Platform follows defense-in-depth principles, with multiple layers of security controls to protect user data and system resources.
```
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Perimeter Security │
│ - DDoS Protection │
│ - Web Application Firewall │
│ - HTTPS Enforcement │
└────────────────────────────────┬────────────────────────────────┘
│
▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Authentication Layer │
│ - JWT Validation │
│ - API Key Authentication │
│ - Credential Management │
└────────────────────────────────┬────────────────────────────────┘
│
▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Authorization Layer │
│ - Role-Based Access Control │
│ - Permission Scopes │
│ - Resource Ownership Validation │
└────────────────────────────────┬────────────────────────────────┘
│
▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Application Security │
│ - Input Validation │
│ - Output Encoding │
│ - Security Headers │
└────────────────────────────────┬────────────────────────────────┘
│
▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Data Security │
│ - Encryption at Rest │
│ - Encryption in Transit │
│ - Sensitive Data Handling │
└────────────────────────────────┬────────────────────────────────┘
│
▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Monitoring & Logging │
│ - Security Event Logging │
│ - Anomaly Detection │
│ - Audit Trail │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
```
## Authentication Security
### JWT Authentication
1. **Token Generation**:
- JWTs are signed using RS256 (RSA Signature with SHA-256)
- Private key is stored securely and rotated periodically
- Tokens include standard claims (iss, sub, exp, iat)
- Short expiration times (24 hours) with refresh token mechanism
2. **Token Validation**:
- Signature verification using public key
- Expiration validation
- Issuer validation
- Audience validation when applicable
3. **Token Storage**:
- Tokens are stored in memory (not localStorage) in browser clients
- Refresh tokens use HTTP-only cookies with secure flag
- Anti-CSRF measures implemented for refresh token usage
### API Key Authentication
1. **Key Generation**:
- Cryptographically secure random generation
- 256-bit entropy minimum
- Prefixed format for easy identification (`mcp_sk_*`)
2. **Key Storage**:
- Only hashed versions stored in database
- bcrypt hashing with appropriate work factor
- Original key shown only once to user
3. **Key Validation**:
- Constant-time comparison to prevent timing attacks
- Rate limiting on API key endpoints
- Automatic lockout after repeated invalid attempts
### Multi-factor Authentication (MFA)
1. **Supported Methods**:
- Time-based One-Time Password (TOTP)
- Email verification codes
- WebAuthn/FIDO2 (future implementation)
2. **Implementation**:
- MFA required for administrative actions
- Optional for general user authentication
- Recovery codes provided for backup access
## Authorization Controls
### Role-Based Access Control (RBAC)
User roles define base permission levels:
1. **Organization Admin**:
- Full control over organization resources
- User management within organization
- MCP service configuration and monitoring
2. **Developer**:
- Create and use MCP service configurations
- View organization-level usage analytics
- Manage personal API keys and tokens
3. **Viewer**:
- Use existing MCP services (read-only)
- View personal usage history
- No configuration capabilities
### Permission Scopes
API keys and tokens can be further restricted with granular scopes:
1. **Service Scopes**:
- `mcp:read`: Use MCP services (read operations)
- `mcp:write`: Configure and modify MCP services
- `mcp:admin`: Manage organizational MCP settings
2. **User Scopes**:
- `user:read`: Read user profile information
- `user:write`: Update user profile
- `user:token`: Manage personal tokens
3. **Organization Scopes**:
- `org:read`: View organization information
- `org:write`: Update organization settings
- `org:admin`: Manage organization users and billing
### Resource Ownership Validation
All resource access is validated against ownership:
1. **User Resources**:
- Personal tokens and API keys
- User profile information
- Personal usage logs
2. **Organization Resources**:
- MCP service configurations
- Organization settings
- User management within organization
3. **Row-Level Security**:
- Implemented at database level using Supabase RLS policies
- Example policy:
```sql
CREATE POLICY "Users can only access their own tokens"
ON user_tokens
FOR ALL
USING (auth.uid() = user_id);
```
## Data Protection
### Encryption at Rest
1. **Database Encryption**:
- Transparent Data Encryption (TDE) at database level
- Encrypted backups
- Secure key management
2. **Application-Level Encryption**:
- Sensitive fields encrypted before storage
- Service-specific tokens encrypted with AES-256-GCM
- Separate encryption keys for different data categories
3. **Key Management**:
- Encryption keys stored in secure key management service
- Automatic key rotation schedule
- Access to keys restricted to application services
### Encryption in Transit
1. **HTTPS Enforcement**:
- TLS 1.2+ required for all connections
- Strong cipher suites
- HSTS implementation
- Certificate pinning for API clients
2. **API Communication**:
- All API endpoints require HTTPS
- Internal service communication encrypted
- Secure WebSocket connections when applicable
### Sensitive Data Handling
1. **Data Classification**:
- Clear classification of data sensitivity levels
- Handling procedures based on classification
- Access controls aligned with classification
2. **Secure Storage Practices**:
- Sensitive data stored only when necessary
- Automatic purging of unnecessary sensitive data
- Secure deletion procedures
3. **Data Minimization**:
- Collection limited to necessary information
- Retention periods defined for different data types
- Automatic data pruning based on retention policy
## Application Security
### Input Validation
1. **Validation Strategy**:
- Server-side validation for all inputs
- Schema-based validation using Zod
- Type checking and sanitization
- Rejection of unexpected inputs
2. **API Parameter Validation**:
- Strong typing for all API parameters
- Range and format validation
- Content-type validation
3. **Prevention Controls**:
- SQL injection prevention
- XSS prevention
- Command injection prevention
- JSON parsing vulnerabilities mitigation
### Output Encoding
1. **Response Encoding**:
- Context-appropriate encoding for all outputs
- HTML encoding for web content
- JSON encoding for API responses
- Content-Type headers with charset
2. **Error Handling**:
- Secure error messages (no sensitive information)
- Consistent error format
- Appropriate HTTP status codes
### Security Headers
All API responses include security headers:
```
Strict-Transport-Security: max-age=31536000; includeSubDomains
Content-Security-Policy: default-src 'self'; script-src 'self'; object-src 'none'
X-Content-Type-Options: nosniff
X-Frame-Options: DENY
X-XSS-Protection: 1; mode=block
Referrer-Policy: strict-origin-when-cross-origin
Cache-Control: no-store
```
## Infrastructure Security
### Cloud Security
1. **Network Security**:
- Private VPC configuration
- Network segmentation
- Security groups with least privilege
- VPC flow logs
2. **Container Security**:
- Minimal base images
- Image scanning for vulnerabilities
- No privileged containers
- Read-only file systems where possible
3. **Service Mesh**:
- mTLS between services
- Service identity verification
- Traffic encryption
- Authorization policies
### Secrets Management
1. **Secrets Storage**:
- Dedicated secrets management service
- No secrets in code or configuration files
- Dynamic secrets generation when possible
2. **Access Control**:
- Least privilege access to secrets
- Temporary credentials for services
- Audit logging for secrets access
3. **Rotation Policies**:
- Automatic rotation of service credentials
- Rotation schedules based on sensitivity
- Zero-downtime rotation procedures
## Operational Security
### Security Monitoring
1. **Real-time Monitoring**:
- Suspicious activity detection
- Authentication failure monitoring
- Unusual access pattern detection
- Rate limit breach alerts
2. **Security Analytics**:
- Behavior analysis for abnormal patterns
- Correlation of security events
- Historical trend analysis
3. **Alerting System**:
- Tiered alerting based on severity
- Automated response for critical issues
- On-call rotation for security incidents
### Vulnerability Management
1. **Dependency Scanning**:
- Automated scanning in CI/CD pipeline
- Regular dependency updates
- Vulnerability database integration
2. **Application Scanning**:
- Static Application Security Testing (SAST)
- Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST)
- Interactive Application Security Testing (IAST)
3. **Penetration Testing**:
- Regular penetration testing schedule
- Scope covering all critical components
- Findings tracked to resolution
### Incident Response
1. **Incident Response Plan**:
- Clearly defined roles and responsibilities
- Communication procedures
- Containment, eradication, and recovery steps
2. **Forensic Capabilities**:
- Secure log collection
- Evidence preservation
- Root cause analysis procedures
3. **Post-Incident Analysis**:
- Lessons learned documentation
- Security improvement implementation
- Process refinement
## Compliance Considerations
### Data Privacy
1. **GDPR Compliance**:
- Data processing inventory
- Privacy by design implementation
- Right to access/forget mechanisms
- Data processing agreements
2. **CCPA/CPRA Compliance**:
- California resident identification
- Privacy notice requirements
- Opt-out mechanisms
- Data subject request handling
### Industry Standards
1. **SOC 2 Controls**:
- Security, availability, and confidentiality
- Process documentation
- Control implementation and testing
- Annual certification
2. **ISO 27001**:
- Information security management system
- Risk assessment methodology
- Security control framework
- Continuous improvement process
## Security Best Practices for Developers
When extending the platform or implementing new features:
1. **Secure Coding**:
- Follow OWASP secure coding guidelines
- Use security linters in development
- Conduct peer code reviews with security focus
- Maintain dependency hygiene
2. **Authentication & Authorization**:
- Never bypass authentication checks
- Always validate authorization for resources
- Use platform authentication services, never roll your own
- Test for authorization bypass vulnerabilities
3. **Sensitive Data**:
- Use platform encryption services for sensitive data
- Never log sensitive information
- Minimize sensitive data collection and storage
- Clear sensitive data from memory when no longer needed
4. **Error Handling**:
- Implement proper error handling
- Never expose stack traces or internal errors to users
- Log errors securely with appropriate context
- Fail securely (deny by default)
5. **Testing**:
- Include security test cases
- Test for common vulnerabilities
- Perform negative testing
- Validate input/output encoding
## Future Security Enhancements
Planned security improvements:
1. **Advanced Security Features**:
- WebAuthn/FIDO2 authentication support
- Real-time threat intelligence integration
- ML-based anomaly detection
- Enhanced API abuse prevention
2. **Infrastructure Enhancements**:
- Zero trust network architecture
- Enhanced secrets rotation
- Improved service mesh security
- Infrastructure as Code security scanning
3. **Compliance Expansion**:
- HIPAA compliance capabilities
- FedRAMP readiness
- PCI DSS compliance for billing
- International compliance framework support