testing-api-for-broken-object-level-authorization

name	testing-api-for-broken-object-level-authorization
description	Use when tests REST and GraphQL APIs for Broken Object Level Authorization (BOLA/IDOR) vulnerabilities where an authenticated user can access or modify resources belonging to other users by manipulating object identifiers in API requests. The tester intercepts API calls, identifies object ID parameters (numeric IDs, UUIDs, slugs), and systematically replaces them with IDs belonging to other users to determine if the server enforces per-object authorization.
domain	cybersecurity
tags	["api-security","owasp","bola","idor","authorization","rest-security"]
subdomain	api-security
version	1.0.0
author	oyi77
license	Apache-2.0
nist_csf	["PR.PS-01","ID.RA-01","PR.DS-10","DE.CM-01"]

Testing Api For Broken Object Level Authorization

Overview

Cybersecurity skill for testing api for broken object level authorization. Follows industry best practices and security standards.

When to Use

Trigger phrases:

• "testing api for broken object level authorization"

• "Tests REST and GraphQL APIs for Broken Object Level Authorization (BOLA/IDOR) vu"

• Assessing REST or GraphQL APIs that use object identifiers in URL paths, query parameters, or request bodies

• Performing OWASP API Security Top 10 assessments where API1:2023 (BOLA) must be tested

• Testing multi-tenant SaaS applications where users from different tenants should not access each other's data

• Validating that API endpoints enforce per-object authorization checks beyond just authentication

• Evaluating APIs after new endpoints are added to ensure authorization middleware is applied consistently

Do not use without written authorization from the API owner. BOLA testing involves accessing or attempting to access other users' data, which requires explicit permission.

When NOT to Use

• When you lack proper authorization for testing
• For production systems without change management
• When the task requires legal or compliance expertise beyond technical scope

Prerequisites

• Written authorization specifying the target API endpoints and scope of testing
• At least two test accounts with different privilege levels and distinct data sets
• Burp Suite Professional or OWASP ZAP configured as an intercepting proxy
• Authentication tokens (JWT, session cookies, API keys) for each test account
• API documentation (OpenAPI/Swagger spec) or access to enumerate endpoints
• Python 3.10+ with requests library for scripted testing
• Autorize Burp extension installed for automated BOLA detection

Workflow

# Example: IOC detection
import re

IOC_PATTERNS = {
    "ip": r"\b(?:\d{1,3}\.){3}\d{1,3}\b",
    "domain": r"\b[a-z0-9-]+\.[a-z]{2,}\b",
    "hash_md5": r"\b[a-f0-9]{32}\b",
    : ,
}

 () -> :
     {k: re.findall(v, text)  k, v  IOC_PATTERNS.items()}