1. JWT-based Authentication

   • HttpOnly cookies prevent XSS attacks
   • Secure flag enabled in production (HTTPS only)
   • SameSite=strict prevents CSRF attacks
   • 8-hour token expiration

2. Password Security

   • Passwords hashed with bcryptjs (cost factor: 10)
   • Constant-time comparison prevents timing attacks
   • Password cleared from memory after use
   • Failed login attempts logged
   • No user enumeration (same error for invalid email/password)

3. Rate Limiting

   • Login attempts: 3 per 3 minutes (production)
   • Submission: 3 per 5 minutes (production)
   • Automatic IP blocking after threshold
   • Configurable per environment

4. Session Management

   • Server-side token verification
   • Automatic logout after 8 hours
   • Cookie cleared on logout
   • No session storage in localStorage

X-Frame-Options: DENY
X-Content-Type-Options: nosniff
X-XSS-Protection: 1; mode=block
Referrer-Policy: strict-origin-when-cross-origin
Content-Security-Policy: (comprehensive policy)
Permissions-Policy: camera=(), microphone=(), geolocation=()

• Same-origin checks on sensitive endpoints
• Content-Type validation
• Cloudflare/Vercel IP detection

1. Server-side Validation

   • Email format validation
   • Password length limits (max 128 chars)
   • Message length limits (max 1000 chars)
   • Music field limits (max 120 chars)
   • HTML/script tag stripping

2. Profanity Filtering

   • Configurable word list
   • Automatic censoring

3. Bot Detection

   • User-agent analysis (isbot library)
   • Arcjet DDoS protection
   • Rate limiting per IP

1. MongoDB Best Practices

   • Connection string in environment variables
   • Mongoose schema validation
   • Lean queries to prevent prototype pollution
   • No direct query string injection

2. Audit Logging

   • All admin actions logged
   • IP addresses recorded
   • Timestamps for all events
   • Failed login attempts tracked

1. No User Tracking

   • No cookies for public users
   • No authentication required for submissions
   • IP addresses hashed before storage (optional)

2. Data Minimization

   • Only collect necessary fields
   • No personal information required
   • Music field optional

3. Admin Privacy

   • Admin emails not exposed in UI
   • Login attempts rate-limited
   • Session cookies httpOnly

1. Authentication Required

   • /admin/* - Server-side token verification
   • /api/admin/* - Cookie-based auth
   • /api/confessions/* (GET/PATCH) - Admin only
   • POST /api/confessions - Public (rate-limited)

2. Request Validation

   • Content-Type checks
   • Method validation
   • Parameter sanitization
   • Max body size limits

3. Error Handling

   • Generic error messages (no stack traces)
   • Status codes properly set
   • Sensitive info never exposed
   • Errors logged server-side only

1. Environment Variables

   • All secrets in .env file
   • .env excluded from git
   • .env.example provided
   • No hardcoded credentials

2. Secret Management

   • JWT_SECRET: min 32 characters
   • ADMIN_SETUP_KEY: rotated after use
   • ARCJET_KEY: stored securely
   • MONGODB_URI: connection string protected
   • MONGODB_DB: database name for this app

• Set NODE_ENV=production
• Generate strong JWT_SECRET (32+ chars)
• Enable secure cookie flag
• Configure MongoDB IP whitelist
• Set up Arcjet DDoS protection
• Enable rate limiting
• Review blocked IPs list
• Rotate ADMIN_SETUP_KEY after initial setup
• Enable HTTPS (required)
• Configure CSP headers
• Set up monitoring/alerts
• Regular dependency updates
• Backup strategy in place

Query audit logs:

// Recent admin logins
db.auditlogs.find({ action: "admin_login" }).sort({ createdAt: -1 }).limit(10);

// Failed login attempts
db.auditlogs.find({ action: "admin_login_failed" }).sort({ createdAt: -1 }).limit(10);

// Suspicious patterns
db.auditlogs.aggregate([
  { $match: { action: "admin_login_failed" } },
  { $group: { _id: "$ip", count: { $sum: 1 } } },
  { $sort: { count: -1 } }
]);

If suspicious activity detected:

1. Check audit logs for patterns
2. Add IP to BLOCKED_IPS if needed
3. Rotate JWT_SECRET
4. Force logout all sessions
5. Review recent confession submissions
6. Check MongoDB access logs
7. Update Arcjet rules

• Review audit logs
• Check failed login attempts
• Monitor rate limiting triggers
• Review new confessions

• Update dependencies (npm audit)
• Review security headers
• Check Arcjet dashboard
• Rotate admin passwords
• Database backup verification

• Rotate JWT_SECRET
• Security audit
• Penetration testing (if applicable)
• Update emergency response procedures

• Two-factor authentication (2FA)
• Email notifications on login
• IP geolocation tracking
• Advanced bot detection (hCaptcha)
• Session management UI
• Automated threat response
• Data encryption at rest
• Regular automated security scans

For security issues, please report to the project maintainers immediately. Do not create public GitHub issues for security vulnerabilities.

Last Updated: February 12, 2026 Security Audit Status: ✅ Passed (Self-Audit)