Automatic generation of attribute values for rules of a web application layer attack detector

1. A method in a computing device communicatively coupled to a web application layer attack detector (AD), wherein the AD is communicatively coupled between a Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) client and a web application server to protect the web application server against web application layer attacks, and wherein the AD applies rules that each comprise a condition including a set of one or more attributes, wherein each of the set of attributes includes an attribute identifier and a set of one or more attribute values, the method comprising:

receiving, from the AD, an alert package comprising a web application layer request message sent by the HTTP client to the web application server, wherein the alert package was sent responsive to a set of one or more packets that collectively carried the web application layer request message and that resulted in the condition of one of the rules being met, wherein the set of packets are sent using a protocol stack including an application layer that carries web application layer request messages, a transport layer under the application layer to provide end-to-end communication services, and a network layer under the transport layer to route data supplied by the transport layer;

automatically generating, using the received alert package and without relying on a web application layer response message, a new set of one or more attribute values for each of a set of one or more attribute identifiers, wherein said automatically generating comprises:

determining, using the received alert package, a set of one or more observed values for each of the set of attribute identifiers, and

filtering, from the set of observed values, any observed values that cannot be considered indicative of a web application layer attack to create the new set of attribute values; and

transmitting, for delivery to the AD, the new set of attribute values for each of the set of attribute identifiers for a different rule than the one of the rules that caused the sending of the alert package to be used in the AD to protect the web application server against web application layer attacks from the HTTP client or any other HTTP client.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein:

one of the set of attribute identifiers for the different rule is a source Internet Protocol (IP) address; and

one of the new set of attribute values for the one attribute identifier is the IP address of the HTTP client.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein:

at least one of the set of attribute identifiers for the one of the rules pertains to the web application layer request message instead of an IP address; and

at least one of the set of attribute values for the at least one of the set of attribute identifiers is from the web application layer request message instead of the IP address of the HTTP client.

4. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

receiving a second alert package comprising a second web application layer request message, wherein the second alert package was sent responsive to a second set of one or more packets that collectively carried the second web application layer request message and that resulted in the condition of the different rule being met;

automatically generating, using the second alert package, a second new set of one or more attribute values for each of a second set of one or more attribute identifiers; and

transmitting the second new set of attribute values for each of the second set of attribute identifiers for another rule.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein:

the second alert package is received from the AD; and

the second new set of attribute values is transmitted for delivery to the AD.

6. The method of claim 4 , wherein:

the second alert package is received from a different AD owned by a different business enterprise than a business enterprise that owns the AD.

7. The method of claim 4 , wherein:

the one of the rules is an attack specific type of rule in that all of its set of attribute values pertain to application layer request messages and not IP addresses of HTTP clients such that its condition being met indicated a suspected web application layer attack;

the different rule is an attacker specific type of rule in that at least one of the new set of attribute values is an IP address of the HTTP client that was automatically learned as a result of its inclusion as a source IP address in the alert package that was received because of the condition of the attack specific type of rule being met; and

the another rule is another attack specific type of rule in that all of the second set of attribute values pertain to application layer request messages and not IP addresses of HTTP clients such that the second set of attribute values for the another rule was automatically learned as a result of the different rule being met.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the alert package further comprises at least one of:

an Internet Protocol (IP) address from the set of packets;

a port identifier from the set of packets; and

an identifier of the one of the rules.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the different rule already existed at the AD when the set of packets resulted in the condition of the one of the rules being met.

10. A computing device to be communicatively coupled to a web application layer attack detector (AD), wherein the AD is to be communicatively coupled between Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) clients and one or more web application servers to protect the one or more web application servers against web application layer attacks, wherein the AD is to apply rules that each comprise a condition including a set of one or more attributes, wherein each of the set of attributes is to include an attribute identifier and a set of one or more attribute values, the computing device comprising:

a set of one or more network interfaces;

an automatic attribute value generation and rule feedback module coupled to the set of network interfaces and comprising,

an alert package reception module configured to receive, from the AD, alert packages that comprise web application layer request messages sent by the HTTP clients to the one or more web application servers, wherein the alert packages are to be sent responsive to sets of one or more packets that collectively carry the web application layer request messages and that result in the conditions of the rules being met, wherein the sets of packets are to be sent using a protocol stack including an application layer that carries web application layer request messages, a transport layer under the application layer to provide end-to-end communication services, and a network layer under the transport layer to route data supplied by the transport layer,

an attribute value generation module configured to automatically generate, using the alert packages and without relying on a web application layer response messages, new sets of one or more attribute values for sets of one or more attribute identifiers, wherein the attribute value generation module is to automatically generate the new sets of attribute values by being configured to:

determine, using the received alert packages, sets of one or more observed values for each attribute identifier in respective sets of attribute identifiers, and

filter, from the sets of observed values, any observed values that cannot be considered indicative of a web application layer attack to create the new sets of attribute values, and

a transmission module configured to transmit, for delivery to the AD, the new sets of attribute values for the sets of attribute identifiers for different rules than the rules that caused the sending of the alert packages, wherein the different rules are to be used in the AD to protect the one or more web application servers against web application layer attacks from the HTTP clients or any other HTTP clients.

11. The computing device of claim 10 , wherein:

one of the set of attribute identifiers for the different rules is a source Internet Protocol (IP) address; and

one of the new set of attribute values for the one attribute identifier is the IP address of one of the HTTP clients.

12. The computing device of claim 11 , wherein:

at least one of the set of attribute identifiers for the one of the rules is to pertain to the web application layer request message instead of any IP address; and

at least one of the set of attribute values for the at least one of the set of attribute identifiers is to be from the web application layer request message instead of the IP address of the one of the HTTP clients.

13. The computing device of claim 10 , wherein:

the alert package reception module is further configured to receive an alert package comprising a web application layer request message, wherein the alert package was sent responsive to a set of one or more packets that collectively carried the web application layer request message and that resulted in the condition of one of the different rules being met;

the attribute value generation module is further configured to automatically generate, using the alert package, a new set of one or more attribute values for each of a set of one or more attribute identifiers; and

the transmission module is further configured to transmit the new set of attribute values for each of the set of attribute identifiers for another rule.

14. The computing device of claim 13 , wherein:

the alert package reception module is to receive the alert package from the AD; and

the transmission module is to transmit the new set of attribute values for delivery to the AD.

15. The computing device of claim 13 , wherein:

the alert package reception module is to receive the alert package from a different AD owned by a different business enterprise than a business enterprise that owns the AD.

16. The computing device of claim 13 , wherein:

the one of the different rules is to be an attacker specific type of rule in that at least one of its set of attribute values is an IP address of one of the HTTP clients; and

the another rule is to be an attack specific type of rule in that all of the set of attribute values pertain to application layer request messages and not IP addresses such that the set of attribute values for the another rule was automatically learned as a result of the one of the different rules being met.

17. The computing device of claim 10 , wherein one of the alert packages is to further comprise at least one of:

an Internet Protocol (IP) address from the set of packets that caused the one alert package to be sent;

a port identifier from the set of packets that caused the one alert package to be sent; and

an identifier of the rule having the condition that was met that caused the one alert package to be sent.

18. The computing device of claim 10 , wherein at least one of the different rules is to already exist at the AD when the set of packets that resulted in the condition of the one of the rules being met arrived at the AD.