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Picatic API Key

Picatic is an online ticketing and event management platform that allows users to create, manage, and sell tickets for events. The Picatic API Key is a credential used to authenticate requests to the Picatic API, enabling access to event data, ticket sales, and attendee information. Exposure of this API Key can lead to unauthorized access to sensitive event data and potential misuse of the platform's functionalities, posing a significant security risk.

How Does It Look​

Picatic API Keys can appear in various contexts, such as:

  • Environment variables:

    export PICATIC_API_KEY="pk_live_XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX"

  • Configuration files (JSON):

    {
      "apiKey": "pk_live_XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX"
    }

  • Code snippets:

    const apiKey = "pk_live_XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX";

  • Connection strings:

    https://api.picatic.com/v2/events?api_key=pk_live_XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Severity​

  • 🟠 High

The Picatic API Key provides access to event management functionalities, including viewing and modifying event details, ticket sales, and attendee information. Unauthorized access can lead to data breaches and financial losses, especially if the key has permissions to modify or delete event data.

What Can an Attacker Do?​

With immediate access to a Picatic API Key, an attacker can interact with the Picatic API to perform unauthorized actions.

Key actions an attacker can perform:

  • View event data: Access sensitive event details and attendee information (if the credential has read permissions).
  • Modify event details: Change event information, such as dates and descriptions (if write access is enabled).
  • Manage ticket sales: Alter ticket prices or availability, potentially leading to financial loss (if the account has sales management permissions).
  • Access financial data: View transaction details and billing information (if the account has billing scope enabled).

An attacker could potentially escalate their access by exploiting other vulnerabilities within the application or using the API Key to pivot to other systems connected to the Picatic account.

Real-World Impact​

Exposure of a Picatic API Key poses significant business risks, including unauthorized access to event management functionalities.

Potential consequences include:

  • Data Exposure: Attendee information and event details (if the credential has read access to sensitive data).
  • Financial Loss: Unauthorized ticket sales or refunds (if billing/resource creation is permitted).
  • Operational Disruption: Events could be altered or canceled, affecting operations (if the attacker has delete/modify permissions).
  • Reputational Damage: Loss of trust from event organizers and attendees due to data breaches.

In the worst-case scenario, an attacker could cause widespread disruption across multiple events, leading to significant financial and reputational damage.

Prerequisites for Exploitation​

To exploit a Picatic API Key, an attacker needs:

  • Network access: Ability to send requests to the Picatic API endpoint.
  • API endpoint knowledge: Understanding of the Picatic API structure and endpoints.
  • No rate limits: Exploitation is easier if there are no strict rate limits or IP restrictions in place.

How to Verify If It's Active​

To verify if a Picatic API Key is active, use the following command:

curl -X GET "https://api.picatic.com/v2/events" -H "Authorization: Bearer [API_KEY]"

Valid credential response: A successful response will return event data in JSON format.

Invalid/expired credential response: An error message indicating unauthorized access or invalid API Key.

Detection Patterns​

Common Variable Names:

  • PICATIC_API_KEY
  • API_KEY
  • PICATIC_KEY
  • EVENT_API_KEY
  • TICKET_API_KEY
  • PICATIC_SECRET

File Locations:

  • .env
  • config.json
  • settings.yaml
  • appsettings.json
  • credentials.txt

Regex Pattern:

pk_live_[A-Za-z0-9]{24}

Remediation Steps​

  1. Revoke immediately - Go to Picatic Dashboard > API Keys and delete the compromised key.
  2. Audit access logs - Review Picatic API logs for unauthorized access or modifications during the exposure window.
  3. Assess blast radius - Identify all systems, applications, and environments that used the exposed API Key.
  4. Rotate credential - Generate a new API Key in the Picatic Dashboard with least-privilege permissions.
  5. Update dependent systems - Deploy the new API Key to all applications and update CI/CD pipelines securely.
  6. Harden access controls - Enable IP allowlisting in Picatic and require secure connections.
  7. Implement secrets management - Migrate API Keys to a secrets manager (HashiCorp Vault, AWS Secrets Manager) to prevent hardcoding.
  8. Add detection controls - Set up pre-commit hooks and repository scanning to catch credential leaks before they reach production.

Credential exposures often go undetected for extended periods, increasing the window for exploitation. As a long-term strategy, plan to establish an internal process or engage an external vendor for continuous external exposure monitoring. This helps identify leaked secrets across public repositories, paste sites, dark web forums, and other external sources before attackers can leverage them. Proactive detection and rapid response are essential to minimizing the impact of credential leaks.

References​