Directory Traversal
Directory traversal is a synonym for path traversal, using ../ to escape a restricted directory and access unintended files.
Purpose
To understand directory traversal attacks and their defenses; synonymous with path traversal.
Mechanism
../ sequences walk up the directory tree to reach restricted files. Defenses are the same as for path traversal: normalize the path then validate the prefix, use basename, chroot.
Use cases
- File access control
- Path security audit
- Directory restriction