PHP REST API cybersecurity

What You'll Learn:

• How to secure PHP REST APIs against the most common vulnerabilities.

• The importance of secure error handling and response management in API development.

• How properly expose API documentation.

• Why JSON format is much more better choice then XML.

• What are the main XML format vulnerabilities (DoS, XXE, RCE) and how to defense against it.

• How to manage API keys securely and prevent unauthorized access.

• How to prevent XSS (Cross-Site Scripting) and CSRF (Cross-Site Request Forgery) attacks in your APIs.

• How to mitigate SQL Injection, Command Injection, and other injection-based attacks.

• How to deal with SSTI (Server-Side Template Injection), Path Traversal.

• Why Command Injection is so dangerous by handling zero-day advanced attack by your own hands.

• How to handle deserialization vulnerabilities and prevent them in PHP.

• Best practices for securing authorization and authentication in PHP applications, with a focus on JWT vulnerabilities.

• How to implement rate limiting and throttling to protect APIs from abuse.

• How to secure webhooks and prevent SSRF (Server-Side Request Forgery) vulnerabilities.

• Practical coding exercises with real-world vulnerability recreations and fixes.

Requirements:

• Basic knowledge of PHP and REST API development.

• Familiarity with web development concepts (no prior security experience required).

• Docker and docker compose installation at own OS, basic docker knowledge to be able to run environment

  
  

Short Description:

This course will teach you how to secure your PHP REST APIs from the ground up. You’ll learn how to protect your applications from common vulnerabilities, including SQL injection, XSS, CSRF,  SSTI, Path Traversal, Command injection and much more. The course focuses on practical, hands-on coding examples, where you’ll replicate real-world attacks and then apply best practices to defend against them. By the end of the course, you’ll have a solid understanding of REST API PHP security, helping you build safer and more robust APIs.

COURSE STRUCTURE:

The course starts with a quick introduction to REST and PHP, assuming you have some basic knowledge of both. We’ll jump right into the security issues that most developers face when building REST APIs.

In the first several sections, we’ll focus on API documentation errors, debugging, and error handling, highlighting how common mistakes can lead to security vulnerabilities. These aspects are often overlooked but are essential for building a secure application.

Then will dive into the data formats used in REST APIs, with a focus on JSON, XML, and YAML. We’ll explore how these formats can introduce security flaws like XXE/DoS and discuss how to mitigate these risks.

Next, we’ll cover some of the most common vulnerabilities, such as XSS, CSRF, SSTI, SQL injection, Command Injection, and Path Traversal. Each vulnerability is explained with a brief theory, followed by hands-on coding exercises where you will simulate the attack, understand its mechanics, and learn how to defend against it.x

There is focused section, we’ll discuss deserialization vulnerabilities and how to prevent them in PHP, covering secure error handling and response management practices.

In the following sections, we’ll discuss authorization and authentication vulnerabilities, with a special focus on JWT (JSON Web Tokens). You’ll learn how to securely implement token-based authentication and protect against JWT vulnerabilities.

The course then moves on to rate limiting and throttling, showing you how to prevent abuse and mitigate denial of service attacks. You’ll also learn how to secure webhooks and prevent SSRF vulnerabilities.

Throughout the course, I’ll provide practical examples and real-world case studies from my own experience, giving you an insider’s view of how vulnerabilities are exploited and how to safeguard against them. You'll also have the opportunity to replicate attacks in a safe, controlled environment and apply defensive techniques in real-time.

Who This Course Is For:

• PHP developers looking to improve their security skills and protect their APIs.

• Web developers who want to deepen their understanding of security best practices for REST APIs.

• Security professionals interested in PHP and web application security.

• Penetration testers who want to specialize in PHP security.

• Students and enthusiasts eager to learn about web application security in the context of PHP development.