The Tool Desk
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Why the proxy workflow broke down
Thakur says he tried Burp, Caido, and browser configurations but captured only intermittent traffic. The application was an internal UAT web app behind a VPN and IP filtering. While proxy capture remained unreliable, he read the application’s JavaScript to understand its front end. His account does not identify the application, browser version, or exact proxy configuration, so it is a case report rather than a reproducible comparison of those tools.
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His eventual alternative changed where observation happened: instead of routing requests through a proxy, a browser extension observed requests and forwarded data to a separate local program. A proxy can be useful when a tester needs to intercept or modify requests in the request path. The listener workflow was aimed at recording browser-observed traffic without relying on that path.
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From browser storage to a local collector
Thakur’s first extension stored captured requests in localStorage. He says the collection became slow as it grew, but his post provides no benchmark or threshold. He then changed the design so the extension forwarded observations immediately to a local listener, which accepted data at /capture and stored it.
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The post describes newline-delimited JSON, optional domain filtering, a simple history view, and exports to raw requests, Postman, HAR, or URL lists. These are features of the workflow as Thakur describes it, not independently tested capabilities or performance results.
Why CORS mattered
The first extension-to-listener request failed because the listener did not answer the browser’s CORS preflight. Thakur says he added the appropriate response and the flow then worked. The practical point is to configure the listener’s cross-origin policy deliberately: an extension’s request to a local service may trigger a preflight, and the service must respond as required for the request and browser context.
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There is no universal extension recipe in the account. Chrome’s webRequest documentation specifies permission and event-configuration requirements, including webRequest and relevant host permissions. It also says that preflight visibility is not automatic and that Manifest V3 removes webRequestBlocking for most extensions. The exact implementation therefore depends on browser, manifest version, permissions, event configuration, and the listener’s CORS policy.
What a listener can—and cannot—replace
| Consideration | Proxy in the request path | Browser observation plus local listener |
|---|---|---|
| Primary fit | Intercepting or modifying requests in transit | Recording browser-observed requests without routing them through a proxy |
| What is observed | Traffic that traverses and is visible to the configured proxy | Data exposed through the browser extension API, subject to its permissions and visibility limits |
| Configuration described here | Thakur reports intermittent capture despite trying browser and proxy configurations | Extension permissions and host permissions, plus listener handling for cross-origin preflight requests |
| Collection and handling | Depends on the proxy setup | Thakur describes forwarding to a local program, storing observations, filtering domains, and exporting data |
Chrome describes webRequest as an abstraction of the network stack, not a guarantee of a complete wire-level record. The API requires permissions and has data and connection types it does not expose or fully support. Thakur does not state the browser version, manifest, or exact API usage, so his implementation should not be assumed to work unchanged in every current browser. Use a proxy or another capture method when the assessment requires wire-level visibility, request modification, or data that the browser API does not expose.
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How Thakur used the capture to compare roles
Compare what each role can invoke
Thakur says he crawled the application as a sales user and as a super-admin, then compared the endpoint lists. He tried some admin-only requests using the sales account’s token. He reports that several sensitive actions succeeded, including changing other users’ account details and creating records.
Those are the author’s reported findings, not a confirmed vulnerability in an identifiable application: the target is unnamed and the post does not provide request details or an external verification report. The account says he found “200+ endpoints” and spent three days troubleshooting; both figures describe Thakur’s personal experience in 2026, not general benchmarks.
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Test authorization at the server boundary
- Use accounts with distinct roles. Capture the application’s behavior under each account in an environment you are authorized to assess.
- Compare the observed actions and endpoints. Identify requests available to the more privileged role that are not exposed through the lower-privilege user’s interface.
- Test the relevant request with the lower-privilege credentials. A missing button or hidden screen does not prove that the server blocks the underlying action.
- Check the server’s authorization result. Record whether the server permits or denies the operation; do not treat browser UI behavior or CORS preflight as an access-control boundary.
OWASP’s Code Review Guide v2 guidance on CORS cautions against relying on preflight behavior for access control: ordinary requests must receive the checks they need. Role comparisons are useful because they test the server’s enforcement, not merely which controls the front end chooses to show.
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When this approach makes sense
- Choose browser-side observation when the aim is to record browser-exposed requests and a proxy is not capturing reliably in the environment.
- Choose an in-path proxy when the task requires intercepting or changing requests, or when the browser observation API does not expose the needed information.
- Plan for local data handling. Captured traffic may contain tokens or personal information. Restrict access to the listener and its stored files, and retain only what the authorized assessment needs.
- Keep the method scoped. Test only applications and accounts for which you have authorization; endpoint discovery does not itself grant permission to invoke sensitive actions.
Thakur’s takeaway is: “A proxy is a tool, not a requirement. If the network fights interception, stop forcing it. Watch the traffic another way.” The value of that advice is practical, not universal: browser observation is another option, with its own visibility, permission, and CORS constraints.
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