Security is one of the most overlooked yet important aspects of your business application. For 10 good days it won’t trouble you at all, but for that one day when it is compromised, you’ll regret paying attention to it sooner.
No matter if you are an app development company or not, there are mounds of data that is flowing through your IT architecture that needs protection. Most of this data is handled by one or another web application that may be exposing you to serious threats.
We can’t really forget the Wanna Cry Ransomware attack that took more than 2,00,000 computers hostage, incurring losses in millions of dollars in 150+ countries.
We will definitely witness similar attacks in the future and the best way to prevent them is to act right now. Here is a list of actionable measures that you can take to ensure a higher web application security.
Audit your Web Application Security
As developers, we believe that your application development team must already be engaged in refining the security of your application to their best extent. They must already be testing out various security controls vital for the application but that eventually they are bound to overlook several things.
Developers live by the code they produce, which makes them susceptible to overlook security flaws in it. This is why we recommend carrying out a security audit, preferably by a third party security specialist.
This would allow a more fine grained speculation of security issues. People who have relevant experience in conducting security audits would be able to find out issues that are next to impossible for in-house developers to pick.
You can contact any of the local security agencies or web development specialists who can audit the code of your application with a business-intensive mindset. Dikonia can help.
Get an Efficient Logging System in Place
What is the first thing you do when you encounter an attack?
You backtrack to the point in the code that was potentially vulnerable (and no one looked into it) and find how was it exploited. But that isn’t that easy, right? Here comes the importance of logging.
Before any of this takes place, always ensure that your developer team is using a proper logging system to keep a track of everything that is being done with the code. This will make code analysis fast and easy for when it is required.
There are a bunch of tools that can be used for this such as Tideways, Blackfire etc, or simply Linux Syslog are good enough options.
Spread the Encryption Wide and Far
Thankfully, we have a number of encryption parameters such as https and hsts that help us strengthen the security of web apps using simple and reliable techniques.
But the reality is that we need to elevate the encryption scale from component level to the whole application level. The point can’t be stressed more that the whole application needs to be encrypted including data end-points, SQL databases, the APIs and the internal servers from where the applications gets data from.
Encryption will save the company from internal dangers such as mal-intentioned employees, server admin errors or leaked vulnerabilities, as well. You can also refer to some popular web apps made by Dikonia.
Make the Updates Strictly On Time
The most common reason of falling victim to cyber attacks is the use of old and outdated software. As mentioned earlier in the 2017 ransomware attack, the affected computers were running unpatched versions of Windows OS, which allowed hackers to exploit the vulnerabilities.
This is a clear cut signal that most of the software including the OS, the productivity software and 3rd party frameworks, must all be updated regularly with time. Many times, a bug or an unfixed issue in an older framework lead to the demise of the whole application.
Updates for major Operating Systems and frameworks such as Javascript, PHP, Ruby are always rolling out; make sure you adopt them well in time and enjoy the security benefits they offer.
Alongside software, it is imperative to give equal weightage to the servers. It is not wise to run an old version of your server admin just because it is convenient and works most of the times. You can go for an automated server side client update software or keep a check on your server management staff.
Follow the OWASP Top Ten Checklist
As a customary measure, it is always advisable to follow the OWASP Top Ten web security parameters that warrant against most common things that can be checked while securing your web application. They are not the sureshot ways to an ultra-secure web app but they definitely provide a solid baseline to start things off.
Conclusion
Web App security is one of the low lying priorities that immediately need to be shifted to the top of the list. This article summarized a bunch of guidelines that will keep you safe from data breach attacks.
Dikonia is a web development company specialised in creating custom Web Application Solutions for business purposes. Our products help businesses and enterprises grow with a boost in efficiency and security. Get in touch with us for your next project.
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