Logout May Not Clear Browser Back-Forward Snapshots, Exposing Sensitive Pages
Browsers' back-forward cache (bfcache) can keep a fully rendered page in memory so Back and Forward navigation appear instant. Because such a restored page may not be revalidated with the server, sensitive content can remain visible after a user has logged out. This poses a particular risk on shared devices, where a second person pressing Back may see the previous user's data before the application re-checks the session. Developers are advised to use Cache-Control: no-store on genuinely sensitive pages, since no-cache does not exclude pages from bfcache, and to combine this with server-side session revocation, client-side cleanup, and storage audits. The article stresses that no single measure is sufficient and that logout should be treated as a distributed state change across server, client, and browser.
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