Artifactory API Token
An Artifactory API token, in the context of cybersecurity, is a credential used to authenticate and authorize access to JFrog Artifactory.
Here's a more detailed explanation:
JFrog Artifactory: Organizations use this repository manager to store and manage software artifacts and packages (e.g., libraries, binaries, and Docker images).
API Token Purpose: An Artifactory API token is a secure way to grant programmatic access to Artifactory's REST API. A token is used instead of a username and password, which can be riskier to expose. This allows automated tools, scripts, and CI/CD pipelines to interact with Artifactory to:
Upload or download artifacts
Search for packages
Manage repositories
Perform other administrative tasks
Security Significance:
API tokens, like any credentials, must be protected. An attacker could gain unauthorized access to an organization's software artifacts if a token is compromised. This could lead to serious consequences, such as:
Stealing sensitive code or proprietary software
Injecting malicious code into software builds
Disrupting software development processes
Therefore, it's crucial to handle Artifactory API tokens with care, store them securely, and rotate them regularly.
ThreatNG can help uncover Artifactory API tokens present in mobile apps through the following:
ThreatNG starts with external discovery. It can perform this discovery without needing connectors. In the context of mobile apps, ThreatNG can find mobile applications associated with an organization across various app stores (e.g., Apple App Store, Google Play). This is the first step in identifying apps that might contain sensitive information, like Artifactory API tokens.
ThreatNG's external assessment capabilities are key to finding these tokens:
Mobile App Exposure: ThreatNG assesses an organization's mobile app exposure by examining the contents of discovered mobile apps.
Authentication/Authorization Tokens & Keys: During this assessment, ThreatNG actively searches for authentication and authorization tokens and keys within the mobile apps, including the "Artifactory API Token."
Comprehensive Credential Detection: ThreatNG doesn't limit its search to just Artifactory API tokens. It also looks for a wide array of other credentials, such as AWS credentials, other API keys, authentication credentials, OAuth credentials, service account/key files, and private keys.
ThreatNG's external assessment is designed to analyze mobile apps deeply and identify embedded credentials, focusing on uncovering Artifactory API tokens.
3. Reporting
ThreatNG provides reporting features that are crucial for communicating findings. For example, if ThreatNG discovers Artifactory API tokens within mobile apps, the reports would include this information. This allows security teams to understand the exposure and take action to remediate it.
ThreatNG provides continuous monitoring. This is important because mobile apps are frequently updated, and new versions could inadvertently introduce exposed Artifactory API tokens. Continuous monitoring helps ensure that any new exposures are detected quickly.
ThreatNG includes investigation modules that offer detailed intelligence to help security teams understand the context of exposed Artifactory API tokens.
Mobile Application Discovery: This module provides details about the mobile apps that have been discovered.
Domain Intelligence: This module provides information about the organization's domains and subdomains, which can help assess the potential impact of a compromised Artifactory API token.
Example of Investigation:
Imagine ThreatNG discovers an " InternalApp " mobile app in the Apple App Store and finds an Artifactory API token embedded within it. The investigation modules can then be used to:
Confirm that the app is indeed associated with the organization.
Use domain intelligence to understand the potential impact if the Artifactory API token were to be misused.
ThreatNG's intelligence repositories contain valuable information that complements the mobile app assessments. These repositories include data from various sources, which can provide context to the findings.
For example, suppose ThreatNG finds an Artifactory API token. In that case, it can cross-reference that information with data in its repositories to see if there are any related compromised credentials or other relevant information.
7. Working with Complementary Solutions
ThreatNG is designed to work with other security solutions, and here's how it can generally be beneficial:
Mobile Application Security Testing (MAST) Tools: ThreatNG can be used to discover mobile apps, and then MAST tools can perform more in-depth analysis to validate the findings and identify other potential vulnerabilities.
Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) Systems: ThreatNG can integrate with SIEM systems to provide alerts about exposed Artifactory API tokens, which can be correlated with other security events.
By combining ThreatNG's external attack surface management with detailed mobile app analysis and integrating it with other security tools, organizations can improve their ability to detect and address the risks associated with exposed Artifactory API tokens in their mobile applications.
