Every year scores of websites are getting hacked, confidential information is getting stolen and companies are losing out millions of dollars. This is growing at alarming rate with no indication of slowing down, though new security measures are being implemented they are not effective in curbing hackers from doing the damage. Though there are many reasons for a website or application getting hacked one of the primary reason is poor quality of codes. A well written code offer more security than all other best practices put together. Here we will see some of the security tips for developers which they can use to develop more secure applications.
1. Keep only the information you need
When taking information from customer it is very important to ask for only those which are important to us. If you are asking them the physical mailing address and won’t send them any newsletter then what is the use of asking it in the first place. Unwanted information takes disk space, consumes time to process and may be vulnerable at any time.
2. Password is not everything
Though passwords are used world over as a security measures from hackers but over dependency on it won’t solve any problems. Companies are using different ways to safeguard users account such as two-step authentication, adding special hardware that locks up cryptographic keys. Some tracks the IP addresses you used to login and when send you email when you login from other system.
3. Add only absolutely required feature
Features are great but simply stuffing a product with features will not serve any purpose and hence it is very important to add only those features that are necessary. Before the development of the application it is very important to negotiate on number of features with the customers or the development team. Adding an unnecessary feature could open the road for more problems in the future.
4. Use encryption whenever required
Encrypting your personal data before storing it into the database allows you an additional layer of security. A developer knows how to use encryption as a way to protect the data and using it in a right amount won’t reduce the functionality of the applications.
5. Use tested libraries
Many developers to save time have a tendency to use unverified libraries and thereby making the application vulnerable. It is prudent to choose secure and well tested libraries than creating your own.
6. Analyze your code through Code analyzer
No matter how smart you are but doing coding repetitively will bring in fatigue and tiredness in you. This may inadvertently cause some error in the code. To reduce the error you can use code analyzer tool like FindBug to find out common mistakes.
7. Keep up-to-date with latest threats
With changing technology hackers are coming out with new ways to hack applications and hence it is very important to stay abreast with current threats. By knowing the threats beforehand developers can be prepared to face any threats.
