How can Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) attacks be mitigated in Salesforce?

Implementing custom headers is a recognized method for mitigating Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) attacks in Salesforce. This technique operates based on the premise that a valid request must include specific headers that a potential attacker cannot easily replicate from an unauthorized site.

When custom headers are employed, they serve as a security measure that forces the server to validate incoming requests more rigorously. For instance, an application can be designed to expect a specific header, like an "X-CSRF-Token," that must be present in every valid request initiated by the client. If a request does not contain the correct custom header, the server can reject it, effectively thwarting attempts by an attacker trying to exploit CSRF vulnerabilities by generating requests from a different origin.

On the other hand, other methods mentioned, such as using cookies, relying on session IDs, or disabling JavaScript, either do not address the specific nature of CSRF threats or may inadvertently weaken overall security. Cookies and session IDs can be stolen or hijacked if a user's session is compromised, while disabling JavaScript can lead to poor application functionality without necessarily preventing CSRF attacks. Using custom headers is a proactive and organized way to bolster application security against these types of vulnerabilities.