Security in Web Development: Best Practices
Security has become an integral component of web development. As our digital world expands, so do the threats and vulnerabilities threatening websites and web applications. The threat of cyber-attacks is becoming increasingly frequent, so making sure your web projects are secure is no longer optional. It must become an absolute requirement. In this article, we’ll go deep into web development security, discussing best practices and strategies that web developers and businesses can adopt to protect their digital creations from potential threats such as user data theft or hackers. Let’s explore the essential principles behind a safe web development approach together!
Web-based applications are able to help you target the ever-growing number of customers as well as customers, in ways which weren’t accessible before. Web-based applications allow your customers, allowing them to communicate and provide support for your products and help them keep their company running.
To protect and secure data, developers should be aware of a few things:
Maintain Security During Web App Development
Before you decide to employ a security team of consultants, consider how you can maintain security in your web applications throughout the actual development of these tools.
Inject & validate (User input isn’t your friend)
A best practice is taking every input as hostile until proven otherwise. The input validation process is designed to ensure that only properly formatted data passes through the web application workflow. This blocks bad or corrupted data from getting processed and could trigger the malfunction of the downstream components.
Certain kinds of input validations are the following:
Data validation of type (ensures that the parameters are of the correct format, such as text, numeric, etc.).
Validation of the data format (ensures that data complies with the appropriate schema format guidelines like JSON and XML).
Validation of data values (ensures parameters meet the requirements for acceptable value ranges and lengths).
There are plenty of other aspects to input validation and inject prevention. Still, the main thing to keep in mind is to verify inputs by using a syntactical approach that is semantic. Syntactic validation must enforce an accurate syntax for information (SSN birthday date, currency number, or complete numbers). In comparison, semantic validation must ensure the accuracy of their meanings within a particular industry environment (the end date is higher than the date of start, and the low price is greater than the price of the high).
Encrypt your data
Encryption is the process of encoding data to shield it from access by anyone not authorized to view it. It does not stop any interference in data transmission but does obscure the information to people who are not authorized to access it.
Not only is it the most popular method to protect sensitive data in transit, but it can also be used to protect information “at rest,” such as information saved in database systems and other devices for storage.
When you use Web Services and APIs, you must not just establish an authentication strategy for those who use their services. Still, all information transmitted through these services must be secured somehow. A vulnerable, open web service can be an ideal target for hackers (and they’ve demonstrated clever algorithms that can identify these services fairly easily).
Use Exception Management
Another important security feature that is geared towards development is the proper handling of exceptions. You should never display more than a generic error message in the event of a malfunction. The exact system messages in full will not do the user any good and instead act as a valuable indicator for threatening organizations.
Manage authentication, roles, and access controls
Implementing effective practices for managing accounts, including strong password enforcement and secure mechanisms for recovering passwords along with multi-factor authentication, are essential steps to follow when creating a web-based application. You can also require re-authentication of users for accessing more sensitive features.
When developing a web-based application, the primary objective is to grant everyone the smallest amount of privileges to allow them to access the information they require out of the platform. With this idea of having minimal privilege, you can greatly decrease the possibility of an attacker performing actions that can cause a crash to the application or whole platform in certain instances (thus negatively impacting other applications running on a similar device or operating system).
Other factors to consider for access control and authentication include password expiration, account lock-outs if applicable, and SSL to protect passwords from being exposed and other account-related data being visible to the public.
Don’t Forget Hosting/Service-Focused Measures
As important as development-focused security tools, proper management of configurations on a service level is crucial to ensure that your web-based applications are secure.
Implement HTTPS (and Redirect All HTTP Traffic to HTTPS)
We have previously discussed encryption using development-focused strategies. Encryption at the service level can be a useful (often necessary) preventative option to protect data. It is usually done employing HTTPS (SSL, also known as Secure Sockets Layer).
SSL is a method used to create an encrypted connection between a server on the internet and the browser. This guarantees that information exchanged between the Web server and the browser remains secure. Thousands of websites utilize SSL, and it is the industry security standard used to protect online transactions.
Furthermore, a general use of SSL is recommended, not just because it will secure your website; however, many problems may arise from sources like stylesetters JavaScript and other documents that aren’t linked via HTTPS via an SSL.
Include Auditing & Logging
We are also concerned about recording and auditing on the server level. Fortunately, much of this information is embedded in the software that serves content like IIS (Internet Information Services) and is easily accessible should you look over various information related to your activity.
Logs are not the sole evidence that indicates suspicious activity is occurring. They also serve as a source of individuals with accountability through tracking the actions of a user.
It is different from Error Logging. “Activity” or “Audit” differs from Error Logging. Logging only requires a little setup because it is integrated into Webserver’s software. Use it to detect suspicious actions, track user actions, and review any mistakes in the application that weren’t detected at the code level.
In rare circumstances, the need for logs could arise in court instances. You are sure you know in these situations, the management of logs is vital.
Use Rigorous Quality Assurance and Testing
If your circumstance allows it, utilizing the services of a third party specializing in vulnerability testing or penetration testing in addition to your testing efforts is a fantastic idea. The majority of these specialized services are extremely inexpensive.
It is always better to be extra cautious when you can and not rely solely on your internal quality assurance procedure to discover every single flaw in the web applications that you’re using. A second layer of testing to find the smallest of flaws on the horizon that other testing methods may not have found isn’t an issue.
For security improvements and routine testing to go more smoothly, ensure you have an established and easily replicated procedure and a complete list of all applications on the internet and the locations where they are available. Nothing is more frustrating than attempting to solve security issues using an exact code library and then having no idea which websites use it!
Your web-based applications must be free of security issues or weaknesses that could violate the PCI or HIPAA guidelines. To ensure this, you must be vigilant in all areas of your strategy and design. When you can, seek out a company that specializes in applying these guidelines to ensure you are sure that everything is put in place so that you can not just prevent attacks, but also comply with the guidelines laid out by the agencies that regulate them.
Be Proactive to Keep Up With the Bad Guys
When talking with people about cybersecurity, I often use military analogies and phraseology because cybersecurity is to me to be in an arms race. The threats are always evolving, and new attacks and strategies are continually being created. Businesses that have an online presence need to be able to defend themselves against these threats to stay ahead of the “bad guys” out there.
Like a well-crafted military strategy, The key to cybersecurity is being proactive.
You must have a clear design for a security plan for all your online sensitive applications. This includes prioritizing the more highly-risky applications. Determining if you have a repository or inventory of all the online applications your company utilizes or makes available to its customers is simpler.
As security threats grow, so do your strategies and strategy for dealing with your strategy for dealing with them. The ever-growing sophistication of adversaries and the emergence of weak points, as we move to online applications to address increasing numbers of the most difficult business challenges, is a challenge that demands constant effort.
The present reality is that although you cannot be sure of preventing every attack, you must aim to tackle the threat by constructing your intelligence to act as a force multiplier. Engage your leaders fully and ensure you are able to deploy the right resources to establish a robust defense that can detect and react to new security threats and threats. The security landscape on the internet changes constantly, and so should your approach to navigate it.
Author Bio
Shahzad Ahmad Mirza is an expert in digital marketing and blogging with a programming background. His writings cover marketing topics, including technology use, social media marketing SEO, and social media optimization. Business entrepreneurialism is also a specialization. Furthermore, he is well known as Director of Operations / Founder at designvalley.com along with gbober.com websites, both of which handle the public relations of individuals.
Mr. Mirza has always loved studying and is passionate about sharing his knowledge via websites. They provide top-quality educational content for people online. He is also working towards making a positive impact through his many experiences. He is determined to share his knowledge with others.