Stack Trace Exposure
DevOps & Securitystack-trace-exposureStack Trace Exposure is an Agent Skill for devops & security published in the thedaviddias/Front-End-Checklist repository on GitHub: a SKILL.md instruction file an AI agent can load to do this task.
Use when reviewing error handling middleware, API route handlers, or server responses for security-sensitive information disclosure.
How to use this skill
Bring this guide into your coding agent with a prompt tailored to the tool you use.
- Open your project in Codex.
- Copy and paste the prompt below.
- Review files and risks before approving any action.
Inspect the Agent Skill at https://github.com/thedaviddias/Front-End-Checklist/blob/HEAD/skills/stack-trace-exposure/SKILL.md and all supporting files. Report provenance, permissions, scripts, dependencies, and security risks. Propose an exact installation into .agents/skills/stack-trace-exposure, but wait for my approval before writing files or running scripts.
Copying this prompt does not install or run the skill. Review third-party files before use.
Prevent stack trace exposure in production error responses
Stack traces reveal file paths, function names, library versions, and sometimes database schema or configuration details. An attacker uses this information to identify the exact version of a framework or ORM, look up known CVEs for that version, and craft a targeted exploit. OWASP lists "Security Logging and Monitoring Failures" (A09) as a top-10 risk partly because organisations often expose this information without realising it.
Quick Reference
- Never return raw error objects or stack traces in API responses
- Log full error details server-side; send only a generic message to the client
- Use a central error handler to ensure consistent sanitisation across all routes
- Assign correlation IDs so support teams can match client-visible errors to server logs
Check
Check whether production API error responses include stack traces, file paths, or internal implementation details.
Fix
Implement a central error handler that logs full details server-side and returns only a sanitised, generic error message to the client.
Explain
Explain what information stack traces reveal and how attackers use that information to identify and exploit vulnerabilities.
Code Review
Review error handlers, catch blocks, and API response code. Flag any location where error.stack, error.message (raw), or internal paths are serialised directly into a response body.
For full implementation details, code examples, and framework-specific guidance,
see references/rule.md.
Rule page: https://frontendchecklist.io/en/rules/security/stack-trace-exposure