Secure Coding Practices

Today we will learn about secure coding practices to prevent vulnerabilities in software development.

Explanation

Secure coding involves writing code that resists attacks like injection, XSS, and buffer overflows by following best practices and principles.

Key Concepts:

OWASP Top 10: Common vulnerabilities like SQL injection, broken authentication.

Principles: Least privilege, input validation, error handling.

Tools: Static analysis (e.g., SonarQube), dependency scanning.

Technical:

Common Vulnerabilities:

Injection: Unsanitized inputs execute code.
XSS: Malicious scripts in web pages.
CSRF: Forged requests.

Security Benefits:

Reduces bugs, prevents data breaches, ensures compliance.

How to setup one properly:

General Best Practices

Validate and sanitize all inputs.
Use parameterized queries.
Implement proper authentication/authorization.
Keep dependencies updated.

Development Environment

Set up tools for secure coding.

Linux/macOS

Install SonarQube or ESLint for code analysis.
Ubuntu: sudo apt install sonar-scanner
Use OWASP ZAP for testing.
For Python: Use Bandit (pip install bandit).
Integrate into CI/CD with GitHub Actions.

Windows

Install Visual Studio with security analyzers.
Use OWASP tools or Fortify.
For .NET: Enable Code Analysis in project settings.

Note: Review code in pull requests.

Application Setup

Implement security in code.

Web Apps (General)

Use HTTPS everywhere.
Implement CSP (Content Security Policy).
Avoid storing secrets in code; use environment variables.

Examples

SQL: Use prepared statements.
JS: Escape outputs for XSS.

Samples:

Example Parameterized Query (Python)

cursor.execute("SELECT * FROM users WHERE id = %s", (user_id,))

Example CSP Header

Content-Security-Policy: default-src 'self'; script-src 'self' 'unsafe-inline'

Example Input Validation (JS)

if (!/^[a-zA-Z0-9]+$/.test(input)) {
  throw new Error('Invalid input');
}