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JavaScript JavaScript Loops, Arrays and Objects Tracking Multiple Items with Arrays Build a Quiz Challenge, Part 2

Jake Ford
Jake Ford
9,230 Points
Posted by Jake Ford
Jake Ford
9,230 Points

Isn't using innerHTML() a security issue?

I have heard that using the innerHTML() function can make a script vulnerable to XSS attacks(Cross Site Scripting). Has anyone else heard this before? Are there alternatives to innerHTML? Maybe using textContent() as discussed here:

http://stackoverflow.com/questions/16860287/security-comparison-of-eval-and-innerhtml-for-clientside-javascript

1 Answer

Steven Parker
Steven Parker
231,275 Points
Steven Parker
Steven Parker
231,275 Points

:point_right: It's only a security issue it it inserts user-provided values.

If you use it to insert static data or something generated without including any inputs from the user, it's not a security concern.

Anytime you put user data on a page it must be encoded or "sanitized". There are a variety of htmlEncode functions available for doing this.

Jake Ford
Jake Ford
9,230 Points
Jake Ford
Jake Ford
9,230 Points

Thanks Steven! I'll check out those htmlEncode functions.