Is it considered a secure practice to compare a user's IP address with the logged-in session's

I have created a JavaScript game using the HTML5 canvas tag that communicates with a server through AJAX to update the database. The issue I am facing is that users are able to manipulate data sent to the server, potentially leading to unauthorized actions.

Currently, everything is validated on the server side, with actions being executed based solely on the ID sent by the user. However, this opens up the possibility of users sending fraudulent IDs (such as someone else's) to carry out actions they should not have access to.

To address this concern, I plan to leverage the 'LoginSession' table in my database, which records user IDs along with their signed-in date, signed-out date, and IP address. My solution involves cross-referencing the current IP address of the requester with the IP address associated with their ID in the 'LoginSession' table.

My main question now is whether checking the user's IP against the stored IP is an effective strategy. Can IPs change during a session? Is it possible for users to spoof or manipulate their IP addresses to match an existing one?

While all input is validated on the server side and stored safely in the database, the challenge remains in preventing users from gaining an advantage by logging in multiple times simultaneously.

Answer №1

One way to enhance security during a game session is by generating a unique hash at the beginning and saving it as a cookie. This hash can be created using a combination of the timestamp and the user's actual ID. To add an extra layer of protection, you can verify the player's IP address against the hash. If there is a mismatch, prompt the user to log in again or generate a new hash for them. By ensuring that only one player is providing data for each user, you can prevent unauthorized access.

Relying solely on the IP address for verification may not be foolproof, as IPs can be spoofed or shared among multiple players. It's important to consider this when implementing your security measures.

Incorporating details about the client's system (such as operating system and browser version) from the User-Agent header into the hash can further strengthen security. If any of these details do not match during subsequent requests, invalidate the hash. This means that a hacker would need to not only manipulate the IP address but also replicate the exact client setup, making it harder to breach the system.

Answer №2

Consider utilizing session cookies to achieve this goal.

Answer №3

Verifying by IP address could be a potential solution, but it's not foolproof due to the possibility of IP addresses changing for various reasons (such as ISP network configurations like NAT, PAT, Proxy, etc.)

It seems like players must log in before playing the game. In this case, once they log in with their username and password, you can assign them a UNIQUE session ID that allows you to track whether a specific user (based on their USER ID) is logged in or not, saving this information in a database. Subsequently, on subsequent login attempts, you can check if a user (identified by their USER ID) who is already logged in exists in the database and prevent multiple simultaneous logins from the same user. Additionally, implementing a scheduled task to delete inactive sessions after a specified period of time may also be necessary.

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