From c54044aea998a424db366cca1622be6dbb398965 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: HackTricks News Bot <bot@hacktricks.xyz>
Date: Sun, 14 Jun 2026 03:49:15 +0000
Subject: [PATCH] Add content from: Client-side Authentication Bypass

---
 src/pentesting-web/login-bypass/README.md | 46 +++++++++++++++++++++++
 1 file changed, 46 insertions(+)

diff --git a/src/pentesting-web/login-bypass/README.md b/src/pentesting-web/login-bypass/README.md
index d6d2ce204b4..cc9b80ae826 100644
--- a/src/pentesting-web/login-bypass/README.md
+++ b/src/pentesting-web/login-bypass/README.md
@@ -86,6 +86,48 @@ If the page has "**Remember Me**" functionality check how is it implemented and
 
 Pages usually redirects users after login, check if you can alter that redirect to cause an [**Open Redirect**](../open-redirect.md). Maybe you can steal some information (codes, cookies...) if you redirect the user to your web.
 
+### Client-side authentication & authorization bypass in SPAs
+
+Some applications only protect routes/actions in the **frontend** (route guards, hidden buttons, `localStorage` / `sessionStorage`, feature flags, or JSON fields such as `role`, `groups`, `is_active`, `PluginId`, `TimeoutStatus`). If the **backend APIs don't re-check authentication and authorization**, you can often unlock the whole UI or perform the action directly.
+
+Quick workflow:
+
+1. **Read the JS bundle** (`main.js`, chunks, source maps) and search for `authRequired`, `beforeEach`, `isUserLoggedIn`, `localStorage`, `sessionStorage`, `userInfo`, `token`, `exp`, `role`, `groups`, `is_active`, `PluginId`, `TimeoutStatus`.
+2. **Locate the trust boundary**: identify whether the SPA only checks that a storage key exists, a date is in the future, or a JSON field is truthy.
+3. **Forge the expected state** in DevTools or intercept proxy traffic to modify the relevant response fields.
+4. **Validate impact server-side** by performing the hidden action or calling the API directly. If the server accepts it, this is a real auth/authz bypass, not just a cosmetic UI issue.
+
+Common patterns:
+
+- **Storage-only login check**: if `isUserLoggedIn()` only checks `localStorage.getItem("token")` and whether `tokenExpiry` is in the future, set both values manually and reload.
+- **JWT-like parsing without verification**: if frontend code only splits `token` on `.`, base64url-decodes the payload, and reads claims like `_id` or `exp`, any syntactically valid JWT-like value with the expected claims may satisfy the SPA unless the backend verifies it.
+- **Truthy-object resolver**: if a route resolver only checks `if (userInfo)`, `sessionStorage.setItem("userInfo", JSON.stringify({}))` is often enough because `{}` is valid JSON and truthy.
+- **Response-driven authorization**: intercept endpoints such as `GetSessionInfo` / `GetNotifications` and replace `null` / `false` values in fields like `Groups`, `PluginId`, or `UserCanUpdate*`; also try removing logout indicators such as `"TimeoutStatus":"Timeout"`.
+- **UI-only privilege flags**: flip booleans such as `is_active`, `canEdit`, `isAdmin`, or feature flags in profile/account responses to reveal hidden functionality, then try the newly exposed write action.
+
+Examples:
+
+```javascript
+localStorage.setItem("token", "<jwt-like-value>");
+localStorage.setItem("tokenExpiry", "2030-01-01T00:00:00Z");
+
+sessionStorage.setItem("userInfo", JSON.stringify({}));
+sessionStorage.setItem("loggedIn", JSON.stringify(true));
+```
+
+```json
+{
+  "Groups": ["Production Admin"],
+  "PluginId": "<copied-or-guessed-value>",
+  "UserCanUpdateRunningOrder": true,
+  "UserCanUpdateText": true
+}
+```
+
+> [!TIP]
+> If the page only unlocks after you change the frontend state but the API still returns `401` / `403`, the finding is probably just a **client-side-only UI bypass**. The real vulnerability exists when backend endpoints also trust that client-controlled state.
+
+
 ## Other Checks
 
 - Check if you can **enumerate usernames** abusing the login functionality.
@@ -97,6 +139,10 @@ Pages usually redirects users after login, check if you can alter that redirect
 
 
 
+## References
+
+- [Client-side Authentication Bypass](https://kuldeep.io/posts/client-side-authentication-bypass/)
+
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