mod_session_crypto Session encryption support Extension mod_session_crypto.c session_crypto_module Available in Apache 2.3 and later Warning

The session modules make use of HTTP cookies, and as such can fall victim to Cross Site Scripting attacks, or expose potentially private information to clients. Please ensure that the relevant risks have been taken into account before enabling the session functionality on your server.

This submodule of mod_session provides support for the encryption of user sessions before being written to a local database, or written to a remote browser via an HTTP cookie.

This can help provide privacy to user sessions where the contents of the session should be kept private from the user, or where protection is needed against the effects of cross site scripting attacks.

For more details on the session interface, see the documentation for the mod_session module.

 mod_session mod_session_cookie mod_session_dbd
Basic Usage

To create a simple encrypted session and store it in a cookie called session, configure the session as follows:

Browser based encrypted session Session On
SessionCookieName session path=/
SessionCryptoPassphrase secret

The session will be encrypted with the given key. Different servers can be configured to share sessions by ensuring the same encryption key is used on each server.

If the encryption key is changed, sessions will be invalidated automatically.

For documentation on how the session can be used to store username and password details, see the mod_auth_form module.

SessionCryptoPassphrase The key used to encrypt the session SessionCryptoPassphrase secret none server config virtual host directory .htaccess Available in Apache 2.3.0 and later

The SessionCryptoPassphrase directive specifies the key to be used to enable symmetrical encryption on the contents of the session before writing the session, or decrypting the contents of the session after reading the session.

Keys are more secure when they are long, and consist of truly random characters. Changing the key on a server has the effect of invalidating all existing sessions.

If the SessionCryptoCertificateFile directive is set and asymmetrical encryption is enabled instead, the SessionCryptoPassphrase directive will be interpreted as the passphrase of the key, if the key is encrypted.

 SessionCryptoCertificateFile The certificate used to encrypt and decrypt the session SessionCryptoCertificateFile file none server config virtual host directory .htaccess Available in Apache 2.3.0 and later

The SessionCryptoCertificateFile directive specifies the name of a certificate to be used to asymmetrically encrypt the contents of the session before writing the session, or decrypting the content of the session after reading the session.

Changing the certificate on a server has the effect of invalidating all existing sessions.

If the key associated with this certificate is protected with a passphrase, the SessionCryptoPassphrase directive will be interpreted as the passphrase to use to decrypt the key.

Experimental

This directive is dependent on experimental support for asymmetrical encryption support currently available in prerelease versions of OpenSSL, and will only be available on platforms that support it.

 SessionCryptoCertificateKeyFile The certificate key used to encrypt and decrypt the session SessionCryptoCertificateKeyFile file none server config virtual host directory .htaccess Available in Apache 2.3.0 and later

The SessionCryptoCertificateKeyFile directive specifies the name of a certificate key to be used alongside a certificate to encrypt the contents of the session before writing the session, or decrypting the content of the session after reading the session.

Changing the certificate or key on a server has the effect of invalidating all existing sessions.

If this key is protected with a passphrase, the SessionCryptoPassphrase directive will be interpreted as the passphrase to use to decrypt the key.

Experimental

This directive is dependent on experimental support for asymmetrical encryption support currently available in prerelease versions of OpenSSL, and will only be available on platforms that support it.

 SessionCryptoCipher The name of the cipher to use during encryption / decryption SessionCryptoCipher cipher AES256 server config virtual host directory .htaccess Available in Apache 2.3.0 and later

The SessionCryptoCipher directive specifies the name of the cipher to use during encryption. The ciphers available will depend on the underlying encryption toolkit on the server platform.

 SessionCryptoDigest The name of the digest to use during encryption / decryption SessionCryptoDigest cipher SHA server config virtual host directory .htaccess Available in Apache 2.3.0 and later

The SessionCryptoDigest directive specifies the name of the digest to use during encryption. The list of digests available will depend on the underlying encryption toolkit on the server platform.

 SessionCryptoEngine The name of the engine to use during encryption / decryption SessionCryptoEngine engine none server config virtual host directory .htaccess Available in Apache 2.3.0 and later

The SessionCryptoEngine directive specifies the name of the engine to use during encryption, depending on the capabilities of the underlying encryption toolkit on the server platform.