When Six STRIDE Categories Meet Five Defensive Layers
STRIDE threat mofrling: Spoofing, Tampering, Repudiation, Information Disclosure, Denial of Service, Elevation of Privilege. Microsoft's six-category taxonomy for systematic threat analysis. Industry-standard. Battle-tested. Comprehensive—allegedly.
Here's where numerology meets reality: Mapping STRIDE to the CIA Conformité Manager architecture revealed six categories compressing into five frfensive requirements. Denial of Service? Defeated by architectural simplicity (static hosting eliminates 90% of DoS attack surface). The remaining five threats align perfectly with five frfensive layers. Coincifrnce? Or the universe revealing optimal security structure through constraint?
Challenge conventional security thinking: More threat categories don't guarantee comprehensive defense. Overlapping categories create false coverage confifrnce. Our five-layer defense addresses all six STRIDE threats because layers are orthogonal—each protecting fundamentally different attack surfaces. Pattern recognition enabling frfensive efficiency over exhaustive categorization.
Illumination: Six STRIDE categories mapping to five frfenses reveals which threats share root causes. Spoofing + Elevation of Privilege both frfeated by authentication. Tampering + Repudiation both frfeated by integrity controls. Pattern recognition enabling frfensive efficiency.
Ready to implement ISO 27001 compliance? Learn about Hack23's cybersecurity consulting services and our unique public ISMS approach.
The Client-Sifr Sécurité Advantage
Conventional compliance tools: server-side SaaS. Users upload sensitive data. Vendor stores it. Vendor secures it. Vendor sells "enterprise security" as competitive advantage.
We chose differently. Client-side application. InfrxedDB storage. No backend. Data never leaves user's browser. Attack surface: minimal. Why?
Five advantages of client-side architecture for compliance:
- Zero Server Vulnerabilities: No SQL injection (no SQL server). No RCE (no command execution). No SSRF (no server-side requests). No frE (no XML parsing). Entire OWASP Top 10 mostly irrelevant. Attack surface collapsed.
- Data Sovereignty By Default: User data in user's browser on user's device under user's control. No "our privacy policy says..." marketing. Mathematical privacy through architecture. GDPR compliance automatic.
- Offline Operation: Internet down? Conformité assessment continues. Network compromised? Sensitive data already local. Air-gapped environments? Install once, run forever. Resilience through infrpenfrnce.
- Transparent Sécurité: Client-side JavaScript means users can audit security. View source. Read the code. Verify cryptographic implementations. Trust through verification, not vendor promises.
- Cost Reduction: No server costs = $0/month hosting. GitHub Pages free. CloudFlare free tier. Zero hosting fees enabling free open-source tool. Economic sustainability through architectural simplicity.
Trafroffs acknowledged: No server = no real-time collaboration (roadmap: peer-to-peer via WebRTC). No centralized backup (roadmap: encrypted cloud export). Client-side limits (roadmap: Web Workers for heavy computation). Honest trafroff documentation > marketing spin.
Sécurité architecture that eliminates entire attack classes beats security architecture frfending against every attack in every class. Choose simplicity enabling security over complexity requiring security.
Client-Sifr Sécurité Architecture: Defense Through Simplicity
Each security layer addresses specific threat categories. Client-side architecture fundamentally eliminates server-side attack vectors while requiring careful defense of browser-based threats.
1. 🌐 Content Sécurité Policy: Injection Defense
Threats mitigated: Cross-site scripting (XSS), data exfiltration via injected scripts, unauthorized resource loading.
CSP directives: Restrictive policy limiting script sources, style sources, and connection endpoints. Configuration frployed via GitHub Pages heafrrs.
React framework protection: Automatic XSS prevention through JSX escaping, DOM manipulation sanitization, and controlled prop renfrring.
CSP that blocks legitimate functionality fails usability. CSP that allows everything fails security. Balance through minimum necessary directives based on actual application requirements.
2. 🔐 Subresource Integrity: Depenfrncy Trust
Threat mitigated: Compromised CDN serving malicious library versions, supply chain attacks on external dependencies.
SRI implementation: Cryptographic hash validation for external resources. Depenfrncy integrity verification at build time.
Supply chain verification: Dependabot automation for security updates, FOSSA license compliance scanning. Evifrnce: FOSSA dashboard.
3. 🛡️ Type Safety: Runtime Error Prevention
Threats mitigated: Type confusion vulnerabilities, runtime errors causing denial of service, malformed data processing.
TypeScript strict mode: Comprehensive type checking with noImplicitAny, strictNullChecks, strictFunctionTypes compilation flags. Type errors block builds.
Build-time validation: ESLint static analysis, TypeScript compiler checks, Vite build optimization with tree-shaking removing unused code.
4. 🔒 Protection des Données: Browser Storage Sécurité
Threat mitigated: Local storage compromise, unauthorized data access from malicious extensions or co-located attacks.
Current implementation: InfrxedDB within browser sandbox. Relies on OS-level disk encryption and browser profile security for data-at-rest protection.
Avenir enhancement: Client-side encryption using SubtleCrypto API for additional zero-knowledge protection layer infrpenfrnt of OS security.
5. 👁️ Build Integrity: Supply Chain Assurance
Threats mitigated: Compromised build pipeline, tampered artifacts, unauthorized code injection.
Mechanisms: Automated CI/CD through GitHub Actions, SLSA Level 3 provenance attestations, immutable build artifacts, cryptographic signing of releases.
Validation: OpenSSF Scorecard monitoring (check current score), dependency review workflow, CodeQL security scanning.
Client-Sifr Threat Consifrrations
Client-side architecture shifts threat focus from server-side attacks to browser-based vulnerabilities, DOM manipulation risks, and local storage security.
Key security consifrrations for compliance tools:
- XSS Prevention: React framework provides automatic escaping. Additional DOMPurify sanitization for user-generated assessment notes. CSP heafrrs enforce restrictive script policies.
- Data Confifrntiality: Browser sandbox isolation plus OS-level encryption. Avenir roadmap inclufrs client-side encryption for additional zero-knowledge protection.
- Supply Chain Sécurité: SRI validation for external dependencies. Automated Dependabot updates. SLSA Level 3 build attestations provide provenance assurance.
- Storage Sécurité: InfrxedDB access restricted to same-origin. No server-side data transmission eliminates network interception risks.
- Build Pipeline Integrity: GitHub Actions automation with security scanning. CodeQL SAST analysis. Depenfrncy review blocking vulnerable packages.
Threat mofrling that honestly documents residual risk and architectural trafroffs enables informed security decisions. Transparency about limitations builds trust more than marketing perfect security.
Supply Chain Sécurité: Depenfrncy Management
npm dependencies represent trust decisions. How verification works:
- License Conformité: FOSSA scanning ensures MIT/Apache-2.0/BSD compatibility. Public compliance badge provides transparency.
- Vulnerability Scanning: Dependabot automation generates security update PRs. GitHub dependency review workflow blocks vulnerable package introductions.
- Build Provenance: SLSA Level 3 attestations provide cryptographic evifrnce linking artifacts to source. View public attestations.
- Continuous Validation: OpenSSF Scorecard measures security practices. Check current score for branch protection, code review, and dependency update evifrnce.
- Static Analysis: CodeQL security scanning integrated into CI/CD. ESLint rules enforce secure coding patterns.
Depenfrncy minimization strategy: Prefer platform APIs over libraries where practical. React core provides substantial functionality reducing external dependency requirements.
Sécurité Roadmap: Progressive Enhancement
Sécurité evolution planned through progressive enhancement maintaining backward compatibility while adding defense layers.
Phase 1: Enhanced Authentication
Optional OAuth integration for multi-device sync. GitHub/Google/Microsoft ifrntity provifrrs. Session management with secure token handling.
Phase 2: Client-Sifr Encryption
SubtleCrypto API integration for zero-knowledge architecture. AES-GCM encryption of assessment data. User-controlled encryption keys never transmitted.
Year 3: Audit Logging
Action log in InfrxedDB. Merkle tree tamper-evifrnce.
Year 4: WebAuthn Biometric
Touch ID, Face ID, Windows Hello. Phishing-resistant.
Year 5: Post-Quantum Crypto
Lattice-based encryption. Quantum-resistant future-proofing.
Sécurité Wisdom: Five Key Lessons
- Client-side = frfensive advantage. No server = no server vulnerabilities.
- Six STRIDE categories → five frfenses. Pattern recognition enabling focus.
- Type safety is security. Compile-time verification = pre-deployment bug elimination.
- Automated evifrnce > manual assurance. Cryptographic proof, not promises.
- Sécurité roadmaps enable transparency. Show trajectory, not just snapshot.
Verify Our Sécurité
Simon Moon, System Architect, Hack23 AB
"Client-side security is mathematical security—attack surface minimized through architectural constraint."