Developers who keep a checklist when it comes to application security can reduce the chances of threats having an impact on their code. Small mistakes and vulnerabilities within code that are being developed can lead to major problems.

We will cover the main factors that developers should keep in consideration when developing code to minimize vulnerabilities and keep their code secure – or what to include in your application security checklist.

Scanning Thoroughly for Security Risks

Organizations that only scan for vulnerabilities in their code or penetration testing procedures are likely to be letting a lot of other threats slip through the crack.

Companies should scan for threats across all of the elements that are involved in their application. This especially includes third-party and open-source elements due to how they’re used openly by many people and hackers can have an easier time exploiting them.

Checking for anomalies across all parts of your application is vital to making it more difficult for hackers to gain entry to your system from all angles.

Detecting & Removing Vulnerabilities

Security teams and developers must detect and fix vulnerabilities before applications are deployed into live environments. A common approach that organizations take to reduce threats is to incorporate security at all stages of the development cycle.

This is an effective way to prevent vulnerabilities from being exploited by hackers at all stages of the development process. By prioritizing security as much as development, there are fewer threats that can pass through the net and developers can feel more confident about creating secure code.

IDE Tools

IDE plugin tools can be used to help developers be given outcomes of security tests that are being carried out whilst they’re working on code. Being able to develop code and be provided with security updates throughout the process can be an incredibly efficient way to work.

If there are security issues, developers can be notified by the tool and work to remediate the issue before continuing with working on their code.

Examining Application Security Risks

Examining application vulnerabilities is crucial for enabling developers and security teams to know how secure their code is. Organizations have dedicated security teams who inspect application security risks to create reports quickly and efficiently.

Producing these reports helps companies know where to focus their efforts when it comes to eliminating vulnerabilities. It’s an efficient process that enables developers to focus working on applications and worry less about any threats.

AppSec Toolbelt

An Appsec Toolbelt can be implemented to provide developers with security vulnerability updates end-to-end. Developers can use this tool to give themselves a better idea about security risks in open-source elements and proprietary code.

As a result, they can be sure that the code they’re working on and the different elements involved are secure before moving onto the next stage of the development cycle.

AppSec Training

Security teams that have more experience when it comes to AppSec can provide better security solutions to your applications. Therefore, it’s worth considering providing your security teams with training in AppSec.

Cloud Security

With developers working more closely with cloud environments, they must be aware of the new risks that come with the territory. Whilst cloud environments can be efficient, they also come with a set of security risks that hackers can exploit if organizations don’t know how to combat new threats.

Therefore, you should make sure that your developers understand how hackers can use cloud environments to gain access to applications and steal sensitive data. Once developers have a deeper understanding of security risks that come with using cloud environments, you can put an actionable plan in place to maintain security.

This is important for organizations that are making the move to migrating their applications to the cloud. Be sure that your development and security teams both understand the new risks so that they can work better together to reduce threats.

Consistent Testing

Large organizations often hire services from other companies that provide them with consistent testing across all aspects of their application. This can be an effective method to provide security teams with frequent updates on how to secure applications and to prevent vulnerabilities from being exploited.

It’s important to find a company that can be trusted to carry out testing professionally to ensure that you’re being provided with in-depth reports.

Managing Cookies

It’s common for organizations to employ timeouts and expirations during sessions. These are methods that can prevent hackers from gaining access to your applications by using cookies.

In addition to this, you can set a limit to the number of sessions that can be happening at once. This makes it more difficult for hackers to access your data through sessions and cookies.

Verification System

If you want to let users make accounts within applications, you should create a verification system before granting users access. This can be done in the form of email and a CAPTCHA system.

It’s an easy way to only allow users who have been validated to gain access to applications. This makes it more difficult for hackers to access applications as they’d struggle to get through the verification system.

Changing Passwords

Companies change privileged passwords and administrators frequently to make it more difficult for hackers to gain access to user accounts. Regularly changing passwords is a simple and effective way to keep your user account and applications secure.

Data Security Standards

Using your data security standards is important when setting encryption algorithms in your applications. It ensures that your company is using the right level of security for the applications that are being developed and deployed.

Conclusion

Using this checklist as an outline to keep your applications secure can help to give you a clearer idea about how to approach application security. Organizations are continuously applying security methods to applications due to how attackers are always looking for new ways to exploit companies.

Be sure to implement the tips mentioned throughout this post to help your developers and security teams work more effectively to minimize security risks. This can also help developers work efficiently on new code rather than having to deal with big security risks.