You can’t merely rely on security products to keep your sensitive data safe from cyberattacks and maintain the greatest possible security posture. We’ve compiled a list of the seven most important aspects of web app security that you should keep in mind.

The following are seven best practices for web application security.

1.  Everyone includes in the Security measures

Some firms still believe that security is best handled by a dedicated team. That strategy is no longer viable in today’s business climate:

• Due to a growing skills shortage, security departments are falling behind in the rapid expansion of businesses.
• As a result, having a specialized security team slows down development.
• The security team has more challenges to deal with if security is reactive rather than proactive.

SecDevOps is the current best practice for developing safe software. Everyone involved in the development of web applications (and other applications) is assumed to have some responsibility for security. This approach goes further than DevSecOps. The ability to write safe code is well-known among programmers. There are QA engineers who know how to implement security policies into their testing. When making critical decisions, all the company’s executives and managers keep security in mind.

A practical and safe DevOps strategy involves a lot of training. Everyone should be aware of the dangers and risks associated with online security, as well as the potential vulnerabilities of the software they use. This takes a lot of time and effort, but it pays off in the form of well-designed and safe apps.

2.  Adopt a framework for cybersecurity

A structured approach is needed to deal with cybersecurity. It’s easy to overlook important details and slide into a state of disarray. That’s why so many companies build their security strategy on a specific architecture for cybersecurity. ‘

Developing a cyber incident response plan and appropriate application security checklists are part of a cybersecurity framework that begins with a thorough investigation of security issues. As an organization grows, so does the necessity for such a strategic strategy.

Adopting a cybersecurity framework also has the benefit of helping people see how interwoven cybersecurity issues are, and how web security cannot be handled as a separate issue.

3.  Integrate and automate your security measures

Until recently, application security testing was done manually by security teams using specialized security software. There are many open-source tools that security researchers can use to conduct extra penetration testing. Such an approach, however, is not ideal in today’s security scenario Automated and integrated security processes are the most effective in the IT business.

Automated and integrated security systems are now commonplace. Vulnerability scanners for businesses are designed to work with CI/CD platforms and issue trackers, among other systems. There are several benefits to this strategy:

• There is less room for error if there is less manual labour. For example, if security processes are integrated, no one can neglect to inspect a web application before it is published.
• Early detection and remediation of security flaws can be achieved if security is integrated into the software development process (SDLC). As a result, clean-up is substantially more efficient.
• An issue tracker and other software development solutions, such as security tools, can be utilized to tackle security issues just like any other issue. For security objectives, engineers and managers don’t have to spend their time learning and using various tools.

4.  Develop software securely

Securing software development involves two main considerations:

• Practices that reduce the number of mistakes you make when coding.
• Techniques for spotting and correcting errors as soon as they occur

To begin with, software engineers must be made aware of the dangers of their work. More than only the OWASP Top 10’s vulnerabilities and misconfigurations are required for them to be proficient in SQL injections, cross-site scripting (XSS), and more. Security standards, secure coding methodologies, algorithmic procedures, and online application security tools must also be learned. As an illustration, they should be able to guard against SQL injections.

screening for security vulnerabilities early in the development lifecycle is most beneficial here. If you integrate security tools into your DevOps pipelines, you will be notified of any vulnerabilities as soon as the developer submits new or updated functionality. The developer may still recall the code they were working on because this is done quickly, making it considerably easier to repair such issues. Additionally, it ensures that the developer can correct their own code, rather than waste time trying to decipher code that was authored by someone else years or even decades ago.

5.  Utilize a variety of security mechanisms

When it comes to web security, there are numerous factors to consider, and no single technology can offer total protection. The vulnerability scanner is the most important web application security tool. The best vulnerability scanner will not be able to uncover all vulnerabilities and security misconfigurations in your web applications and APIs/web services such as logical flaws or bypassing complex access control/authentication schemes without human intervention.

Penetration testing cannot be replaced by vulnerability scanning. Vulnerability scanning and network scanning must be used in tandem to ensure the complete safety of web servers. Because some vulnerability scanners may relate to network security scanners, the two actions can be handled simultaneously.

The employment of a SAST (source code analysis) tool in the early phases of the SecDevOps pipelines or even earlier, on developer machines, is becoming increasingly common, in addition to vulnerability scanner technologies based on DAST or IAST. A tool like this is a great addition, but it cannot take the place of a DAST because of its limitations (such as the inability to secure third-party parts).

Nowadays web applications are often 80 percent or more based on code that was not generated by your development teams because most software today is constructed utilizing third-party components, many of which are open source. Although DAST/IAST/SAST tests still detect flaws in programs that largely rely on third-party libraries, an SCA solution can save you a great deal of time and effort by identifying well-known vulnerable versions of such components.

As a means of protecting against online-related dangers, some firms believe that a web application firewall is the most effective method (WAF). Although a WAF is a band-aid, it does nothing to prevent attacks. While a WAF is a critical component of an enterprise’s overall security strategy, it should not be viewed as the primary line of defence against zero-day vulnerabilities.

It’s important to deploy a variety of security measures, but don’t rely solely on purchasing and distributing them to your security staff. As far as possible, these security procedures should be incorporated into your existing infrastructure and automated. They are there to lessen the burden on the security staff, not to add to their workload.

6.  Carry out security drills

Mock attacks are a great technique to see if your private information is secure. Penetration testing is based on this notion, but it’s a one-time event. Continuous security exercises like red team vs. blue team campaigns are the greatest way to review your security stance completely and continuously.

You might think of it as an external organization that constantly challenges your security and a local team in charge of stopping them. This strategy has numerous advantages. This means that your firm is constantly ready for an attack, because of constant training. Since the blue team includes more than simply specific security personnel, it also helps to maintain general security awareness.

A red team isn’t merely a group of hackers who find and exploit security flaws. This is done to teach you how to defend yourself against real cyberattacks (such as phishing scams, social engineering tricks, and DDoS attacks). The additional benefit is that you’ll see how interconnected the many facets of security are and how they can’t be approached in isolation.

7.  Maintain a bounty program

Most top-notch security professionals prefer to operate as freelancers rather than being employed by corporations on a full-time or project basis. It’d be a shame to throw away such a valuable experience. Establishing a bounty program is a great way to utilize these important resources.

While a reward program may seem like a hazardous investment to some companies, it rapidly pays off. It also enhances your brand’s reputation in the hacking community and, as a result, the overall view of your company. Your brand is viewed as mature and proud of its security position if you have a bounty program and treat white-hat hackers appropriately. Public disclosure of bounty program payoffs and responsible disclosure of security vulnerabilities and data breaches can help strengthen this perception.

Final Words

Web app security’s seven most critical considerations have been gathered here. Web app developers should be cognizant of online security at all times. A thorough analysis of security issues is the first step in developing a cyber incident response plan and the relevant application security checklists. CI/CD platforms and issue trackers are among the technologies that vulnerability scanners for organizations are meant to work with. DevOps pipelines that incorporate security technologies ensure that you are alerted to any vulnerabilities as soon as the developer submits new or updated functionality.

Vulnerability scanning cannot take the place of penetration testing. Scanners for vulnerabilities and networks should be used in concert. Mock assaults are an excellent way to test the security of your personal information. Even though a WAF is merely a band-aid, it does nothing to prevent attacks. An effective security team does more than simply hunt for and exploit security weaknesses.

In order to make the most of these valuable resources, a bounty program is a good idea. If your brand is well-known in the hacking community, it will have a positive impact on how others perceive your organization.