awesome-reviewers/_reviewers/aws-sdk-js-isolate-sensitive-buffer-data.md

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Isolate sensitive buffer data	When handling sensitive data in Node.js, protect against data leakage by isolating sensitive content in dedicated buffers. Node.js can create Buffers that aren't fully isolated, where `buf.byteLength !== buf.buffer.byteLength`, meaning sensitive data might be accessible to other code through the shared buffer memory.	aws/aws-sdk-js	Security	Javascript	1	7628

When handling sensitive data in Node.js, protect against data leakage by isolating sensitive content in dedicated buffers. Node.js can create Buffers that aren't fully isolated, where buf.byteLength !== buf.buffer.byteLength, meaning sensitive data might be accessible to other code through the shared buffer memory.

For sensitive operations like decoding credentials or encryption keys:

// Secure approach for handling sensitive binary data
function handleSensitiveData(base64Value) {
  // Decode the base64 data
  const buf = util.base64.decode(value);
  
  // For sensitive data, ensure isolation in Node.js
  if (this.isSensitive && util.isNode() && typeof util.Buffer.alloc === 'function') {
    /* Node.js can create a Buffer that is not isolated.
     * i.e. buf.byteLength !== buf.buffer.byteLength
     * This means that sensitive data is accessible to anyone with access to buf.buffer.
     * If this is the node shared Buffer, then other code within this process _could_ find this secret.
     * Copy sensitive data to an isolated Buffer and zero the sensitive data.
     */
    const copy = util.Buffer.alloc(buf.length);
    buf.copy(copy);
    buf.fill(0); // Zero the original buffer
    return copy;
  }
  
  return buf;
}

Always consider whether your data is sensitive and might require this additional protection. This pattern is particularly important when handling authentication tokens, encryption keys, and other credentials.