Security Fixes Applied

Documentation > Security Fixes Applied

Security Fixes Applied to SentinentalBERT

Overview

This document details all security vulnerabilities that have been identified and fixed in the SentinentalBERT project. The fixes address critical security flaws that could have led to data breaches, unauthorized access, and legal compliance violations.

🔒 Critical Security Fixes Applied

1. Hardcoded Credentials Removed

Files Fixed: - services/evidence/main.py (lines 96-108) - services/viral_detection/main.py (lines 70-91) - docker-compose.yml (multiple services)

Changes Made: - Removed hardcoded database passwords (sentinel123, redis123) - Added environment variable usage: os.getenv('DB_PASSWORD') - Added validation to ensure required environment variables are set - Added SSL enforcement for database connections

Before:

db_password = "sentinel123"  # SECURITY RISK!

After:

db_password = os.getenv('DB_PASSWORD')
if not db_password:
    raise ValueError("DB_PASSWORD environment variable must be set")

2. API Authentication Added

File Fixed: services/nlp/main.py

Changes Made: - Added JWT token verification middleware - Implemented permission-based access control - Added authentication to all sensitive endpoints: - /analyze - requires nlp:analyze permission - /analyze/sentiment - requires nlp:sentiment permission - /analyze/behavior - requires nlp:behavior permission - /models - requires admin:models permission - /models/{version}/load - requires admin:models permission

Security Features Added: - JWT token expiration checking - Role-based permissions system - Secure token validation with proper error handling - Officer ID tracking for audit trails

3. Docker Security Hardening

File Fixed: docker-compose.yml

Changes Made: - Database Security: - Removed external port exposure (5432, 9200, 9300) - Added no-new-privileges:true security option - Enabled read-only filesystem where possible - Added non-root user execution (user: "999:999") - Made volume mounts read-only where appropriate

  • Elasticsearch Security:
  • Enabled X-Pack security (xpack.security.enabled=true)
  • Added TLS encryption for HTTP communications
  • Removed default passwords, require environment variables

  • Added certificate management for SSL

  • Environment Variables:

  • Removed all default passwords from docker-compose.yml
  • Required all sensitive values from environment variables
  • Added secure Elasticsearch authentication

4. Environment Configuration Security

File Created: .env.template

Security Features: - Template for secure environment configuration - Clear documentation of required vs optional variables - Security best practices documented - Instructions for generating secure JWT secrets - Warnings about password rotation and strength requirements

🛡️ Security Measures Implemented

Authentication & Authorization

  • JWT-based authentication with configurable expiration
  • Role-based access control (RBAC) with granular permissions
  • Officer ID tracking for all API requests
  • Token validation with proper error handling

Data Protection

  • Environment variable usage for all sensitive configuration
  • SSL/TLS encryption for database and Elasticsearch connections
  • Secure key management with proper file permissions
  • Read-only filesystem where possible in containers

Network Security

  • Internal-only database access (no external port exposure)
  • Service-to-service communication within Docker network
  • TLS encryption for Elasticsearch communications
  • Secure container networking with isolated networks

Container Security

  • Non-root user execution for database containers
  • No-new-privileges security option enabled
  • Read-only filesystems where applicable
  • Minimal attack surface with reduced capabilities

🚨 Remaining Security Considerations

For Production Deployment:

  1. Certificate Management:
  2. Generate proper SSL certificates for Elasticsearch
  3. Implement certificate rotation procedures

  4. Use proper CA-signed certificates in production

  5. Secret Management:

  6. Use a proper secret management system (HashiCorp Vault, AWS Secrets Manager)
  7. Implement secret rotation procedures

  8. Never store secrets in version control

  9. Monitoring & Logging:

  10. Implement comprehensive security logging
  11. Set up intrusion detection systems
  12. Monitor for suspicious API usage patterns

  13. Log all authentication attempts and failures

  14. Network Security:

  15. Implement proper firewall rules
  16. Use VPN or private networks for service communication
  17. Consider service mesh for advanced traffic management

  18. Implement rate limiting and DDoS protection

  19. Legal Compliance:

  20. Implement proper warrant verification systems
  21. Ensure chain of custody for digital evidence
  22. Add audit logging for all evidence access
  23. Implement data retention and deletion policies

📋 Deployment Checklist

Before Deployment:

  • [ ] Copy .env.template to .env and set all required values
  • [ ] Generate strong, unique passwords for all services
  • [ ] Generate secure JWT secret: openssl rand -hex 32
  • [ ] Set up SSL certificates for Elasticsearch
  • [ ] Configure proper firewall rules
  • [ ] Set up monitoring and logging systems
  • [ ] Test authentication and authorization flows
  • [ ] Verify all external ports are properly secured
  • [ ] Review and approve all environment variables
  • [ ] Implement backup and disaster recovery procedures

Security Validation:

  • [ ] Run security scans on all container images
  • [ ] Perform penetration testing on API endpoints
  • [ ] Validate JWT token security and expiration
  • [ ] Test database connection security
  • [ ] Verify no hardcoded credentials remain
  • [ ] Check for proper error handling (no information leakage)
  • [ ] Validate all authentication and authorization flows
  • [ ] Test rate limiting and abuse prevention

🔍 Security Testing Commands

Test Authentication:

# Test without token (should fail)
curl -X POST http://localhost:8000/analyze \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"texts": ["test"]}'

# Test with invalid token (should fail)
curl -X POST http://localhost:8000/analyze \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer invalid-token" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"texts": ["test"]}'

Test Environment Variables:

# Verify no default passwords are used
docker-compose config | grep -i password
# Should show ${VARIABLE_NAME} not actual passwords

Test Container Security:

# Check container runs as non-root
docker exec sentinelbert-postgres whoami
# Should return 'postgres' not 'root'

# Check security options
docker inspect sentinelbert-postgres | grep -A5 SecurityOpt

📞 Security Contact

For security issues or questions about these fixes: - Review the comprehensive security analysis in COMPREHENSIVE_SECURITY_ANALYSIS.md - Check the secure platform design in INSIDEOUT_SECURE_SKELETON/ - Follow the deployment guidelines in this document

⚠️ Important Notes

  1. These fixes address the most critical vulnerabilities but security is an ongoing process
  2. Regular security audits should be performed on the codebase
  3. Keep all dependencies updated to patch known vulnerabilities
  4. Monitor security advisories for all used technologies
  5. Implement proper incident response procedures for security breaches

The security fixes applied here transform the SentinentalBERT project from a fundamentally insecure system to one that follows security best practices and can be safely deployed in production environments with proper operational security measures.