What is the difference between CSP and CORS?

What is the difference between CSP and CORS?

CSP (Content Security Policy) is a security feature that helps prevent XSS attacks by controlling resources the user agent is allowed to load. CORS (Cross-Origin Resource Sharing) is a mechanism that allows restricted resources on a web page to be requested from another domain outside the domain from which the first resource was served.

Can you give me an example of how CORS works?

Sure! If a web page from domain A tries to fetch a resource from domain B, the browser checks if domain B allows this request by looking at its CORS headers. If domain B includes the appropriate headers, the browser will allow the request; otherwise, it will block it.

How does CSP help in preventing attacks?

CSP helps by specifying which sources of content are trusted. For example, it can restrict scripts to only load from your own domain, preventing malicious scripts from executing.

Are there any downsides to using CSP?

Yes, implementing CSP can be complex and may break existing functionality if not configured correctly. It requires careful planning to ensure legitimate resources are not blocked.