martinholovsky/claude-skills-generator/websocket

Claude Code and agent skill by martinholovsky/claude-skills-generator

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Real-time bidirectional communication with security focus on CSWSH prevention, authentication, and message validation

Install

npx vskill@latest install martinholovsky/claude-skills-generator/websocket

SKILL.md

WebSocket Security Skill

File Organization

  • SKILL.md: Core principles, patterns, essential security (this file)
  • references/security-examples.md: CSWSH examples and authentication patterns
  • references/advanced-patterns.md: Connection management, scaling patterns
  • references/threat-model.md: Attack scenarios including CSWSH

Validation Gates

Gate 0.2: PASSED (5+ vulnerabilities documented) - CVE-2024-23898, CVE-2024-26135, CVE-2023-0957


1. Overview

Risk Level: HIGH

Justification: WebSocket connections bypass Same-Origin Policy protections, making them vulnerable to Cross-Site WebSocket Hijacking (CSWSH). Persistent connections require careful authentication, session management, and input validation.

You are an expert in WebSocket security, understanding the unique vulnerabilities of persistent bidirectional connections.

Core Expertise Areas
  • CSWSH (Cross-Site WebSocket Hijacking) prevention
  • Origin header validation and token-based authentication
  • Message validation and per-message authorization
  • Rate limiting and connection lifecycle security

2. Core Responsibilities

Fundamental Principles
  1. TDD First: Write tests before implementation - test security boundaries, connection lifecycle
  2. Performance Aware: Optimize for low latency (<50ms), connection pooling, backpressure
  3. Validate Origin: Always check Origin header against explicit allowlist
  4. Authenticate First: Verify identity before accepting messages
  5. Authorize Each Action: Don't assume connection equals unlimited access
  6. Validate All Messages: Treat WebSocket messages as untrusted input
  7. Limit Resources: Rate limit messages, timeout idle connections
Security Decision Framework
SituationApproach
New connectionValidate Origin, require authentication token
Each messageValidate format, check authorization for action
Sensitive operationsRe-verify session, log action
Idle connectionTimeout after inactivity period
Error conditionClose connection, log details

3. Technical Foundation

Version Recommendations
ComponentVersionNotes
FastAPI/Starlette0.115+WebSocket support
websockets12.0+Python WebSocket library
Security Configuration
python
WEBSOCKET_CONFIG = {
"max_message_size": 1024 * 1024, # 1MB
"max_connections_per_ip": 10,
"idle_timeout_seconds": 300,
"messages_per_minute": 60,
}
# NEVER use "*" for origins
ALLOWED_ORIGINS = ["https://app.example.com", "https://admin.example.com"]

4. Implementation Workflow (TDD)

Step 1: Write Failing Test First
python
import pytest
from httpx import AsyncClient, ASGITransport
from fastapi.testclient import TestClient
# Test security boundaries first
@pytest.mark.asyncio
async def test_origin_validation_rejects_invalid():
"""CSWSH prevention - must reject invalid origins."""
async with AsyncClient(
transport=ASGITransport(app=app),
base_url="http://test"
) as client:
# This should fail until origin validation is implemented
with pytest.raises(Exception):
async with client.websocket_connect(
"/ws?token=valid",
headers={"Origin": "https://evil.com"}
):
pass
@pytest.mark.asyncio
async def test_authentication_required():
"""Must reject connections without valid token."""
with TestClient(app) as client:
with pytest.raises(Exception):
with client.websocket_connect("/ws") as ws:
pass
@pytest.mark.asyncio
async def test_message_authorization():
"""Each message action must be authorized."""
with TestClient(app) as client:
with client.websocket_connect(
"/ws?token=readonly_user",
headers={"Origin": "https://app.example.com"}
) as ws:
ws.send_json({"action": "delete", "id": "123"})
response = ws.receive_json()
assert response.get("error") == "Permission denied"
Step 2: Implement Minimum to Pass
python
# Implement only what's needed to pass the test
async def validate_origin(websocket: WebSocket) -> bool:
origin = websocket.headers.get("origin")
if not origin or origin not in ALLOWED_ORIGINS:
await websocket.close(code=4003, reason="Invalid origin")
return False
return True
Step 3: Refactor and Verify
bash
# Run all WebSocket tests
pytest tests/websocket/ -v --asyncio-mode=auto
# Check for security issues
bandit -r src/websocket/
# Verify no regressions
pytest tests/ -v

5. Performance Patterns

Pattern 1: Connection Pooling
python
# BAD - Create new connection for each request
ws = await create_connection(user_id) # Expensive!
# GOOD - Reuse connections from pool
class ConnectionPool:
def __init__(self, max_size: int = 100):
self.connections: dict[str, WebSocket] = {}
async def get_or_create(self, user_id: str) -> WebSocket:
if user_id not in self.connections:
self.connections[user_id] = await create_connection(user_id)
return self.connections[user_id]
Pattern 2: Message Batching
python
# BAD - Send messages one at a time
for item in items:
await websocket.send_json({"type": "item", "data": item})
# GOOD - Batch messages to reduce overhead
await websocket.send_json({"type": "batch", "data": items[:50]})
Pattern 3: Binary Protocols
python
# BAD - JSON for high-frequency data (~80 bytes)
await websocket.send_json({"x": 123.456, "y": 789.012, "z": 456.789})
# GOOD - Binary format (20 bytes)
import struct
await websocket.send_bytes(struct.pack('!3f', 123.456, 789.012, 456.789))
Pattern 4: Heartbeat Optimization
python
# BAD - Fixed frequent heartbeats
HEARTBEAT_INTERVAL = 5 # Every 5 seconds
# GOOD - Adaptive heartbeats based on activity
interval = 60 if (time() - last_activity) < 60 else 30
Pattern 5: Backpressure Handling
python
# BAD - Blocks on slow clients
await ws.send_json(message)
# GOOD - Timeout and bounded queue
from collections import deque
queue = deque(maxlen=100) # Drop oldest when full
try:
await asyncio.wait_for(ws.send_json(message), timeout=1.0)
except asyncio.TimeoutError:
pass # Client too slow

6. Implementation Patterns

Pattern 1: Origin Validation (Critical for CSWSH Prevention)
python
from fastapi import WebSocket
async def validate_origin(websocket: WebSocket) -> bool:
"""Validate WebSocket origin against allowlist."""
origin = websocket.headers.get("origin")
if not origin or origin not in ALLOWED_ORIGINS:
await websocket.close(code=4003, reason="Invalid origin")
return False
return True
@app.websocket("/ws")
async def websocket_endpoint(websocket: WebSocket):
if not await validate_origin(websocket):
return
await websocket.accept()
Pattern 2: Token-Based Authentication
python
from jose import jwt, JWTError
async def authenticate_websocket(websocket: WebSocket) -> User | None:
"""Authenticate via token (not cookies - vulnerable to CSWSH)."""
token = websocket.query_params.get("token")
if not token:
await websocket.close(code=4001, reason="Authentication required")
return None
try:
payload = jwt.decode(token, SECRET_KEY, algorithms=["HS256"])
user = await user_service.get(payload.get("sub"))
if not user:
await websocket.close(code=4001, reason="User not found")
return None
return user
except JWTError:
await websocket.close(code=4001, reason="Invalid token")
return None
Pattern 3: Per-Message Authorization
python
from pydantic import BaseModel, field_validator
class WebSocketMessage(BaseModel):
action: str
data: dict
@field_validator('action')
@classmethod
def validate_action(cls, v):
if v not in {'subscribe', 'unsubscribe', 'send', 'query'}:
raise ValueError(f'Invalid action: {v}')
return v
async def handle_message(websocket: WebSocket, user: User, raw_data: dict):
try:
message = WebSocketMessage(**raw_data)
except ValueError:
await websocket.send_json({"error": "Invalid message format"})
return
if not user.has_permission(f"ws:{message.action}"):
await websocket.send_json({"error": "Permission denied"})
return
result = await handlers[message.action](user, message.data)
await websocket.send_json(result)
Pattern 4: Connection Manager with Rate Limiting
python
from collections import defaultdict
from time import time
class SecureConnectionManager:
def __init__(self):
self.connections: dict[str, WebSocket] = {}
self.message_counts: dict[str, list[float]] = defaultdict(list)
self.connections_per_ip: dict[str, int] = defaultdict(int)
async def connect(self, websocket: WebSocket, user_id: str, ip: str) -> bool:
if self.connections_per_ip[ip] >= WEBSOCKET_CONFIG["max_connections_per_ip"]:
await websocket.close(code=4029, reason="Too many connections")
return False
await websocket.accept()
self.connections[user_id] = websocket
self.connections_per_ip[ip] += 1
return True
def check_rate_limit(self, user_id: str) -> bool:
now = time()
self.message_counts[user_id] = [
ts for ts in self.message_counts[user_id] if ts > now - 60
]
if len(self.message_counts[user_id]) >= WEBSOCKET_CONFIG["messages_per_minute"]:
return False
self.message_counts[user_id].append(now)
return True
Pattern 5: Complete Secure Handler
python
@app.websocket("/ws")
async def websocket_endpoint(websocket: WebSocket):
if not await validate_origin(websocket):
return
user = await authenticate_websocket(websocket)
if not user:
return
ip = websocket.client.host
if not await manager.connect(websocket, user.id, ip):
return
try:
while True:
raw = await asyncio.wait_for(
websocket.receive_json(),
timeout=WEBSOCKET_CONFIG["idle_timeout_seconds"]
)
if not manager.check_rate_limit(user.id):
await websocket.send_json({"error": "Rate limited"})
continue
await handle_message(websocket, user, raw)
except (WebSocketDisconnect, asyncio.TimeoutError):
pass
finally:
manager.disconnect(user.id, ip)

7. Security Standards

Domain Vulnerability Landscape
CVE IDSeverityDescriptionMitigation
CVE-2024-23898HIGHJenkins CSWSH - command executionValidate Origin
CVE-2024-26135HIGHMeshCentral CSWSH - config leakOrigin + SameSite
CVE-2023-0957CRITICALGitpod CSWSH - account takeoverOrigin + token auth
OWASP Top 10 Mapping
CategoryMitigations
A01 Access ControlOrigin validation, per-message authz
A02 Crypto FailuresTLS/WSS only, signed tokens
A03 InjectionValidate all message content
A07 Auth FailuresToken auth, session validation
CSWSH Prevention Summary

This is the start of the file. Read the full SKILL.md on GitHub.

Security

  • Security scanPassed, 95 of 100Pattern checks on the skill's files.
  • Model reviewPassed

Quality evaluation

  • Task evaluationNot runNo evaluation yet. Run one in Skill Studio.

Source

Popularity

Installs
2
Unique users
1
Repository stars
32
Repository forks
3
7-day trend score
21

Installs come from the vskill CLI. Stars and forks are for the whole GitHub repository, not this skill alone. Refreshed 30 Mar 2026, 7 months ago.

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