Skip to the good bit
ToggleWeb application vulnerabilities are responsible for external attacks. The situation is only likely to get worse with deployment on new fronts. This includes mobile, cloud, and the Internet of Things. Challenges come with the increasing complexity of applications and the systems to which they connect. As threats evolve, it is important to adopt the latest strategies and technologies for application security assessment and safeguarding.
Shifting from defensive to offensive security strategies
Building strong defenses has been the traditional way to prevent attacks. However, application security trends show organizations are taking a more proactive approach today. Security teams need to be able to identify and mitigate threats early on. This is preferable to trying to deal with the fallout after it happens. Some offensive security measures include penetration testing and attack surface management (ASM).
Another method is dynamic application security testing (DAST). It detects potential security vulnerabilities in software by simulating attacks against an application in its operating state. This allows developers to proactively identify and fix vulnerabilities before an app goes into production. On Codacy, you will find DAST explained in more depth. DAST software tests applications in real-world scenarios so developers can find authentication and configuration problems or other runtime vulnerabilities. This reduces the risks of malware infestations, data breaches, and other security incidents.
Filling security skill gaps with third-party application security tools
One of the top challenges to applications comes from basic vulnerabilities. These include SQL injection and cross-site scripting. These issues go back a long way. However, they continue to cause security problems. Developers can write apps with rich features and functions. This doesn’t help if hackers can hijack or crash them by injecting code.
Pressures of time and lack of resources can make security of applications take a back seat. Developers often rush to meet deadlines as the demand for apps increases. This means rather than secure applications there are flaws attackers can exploit.
Most developers understand the basics of security but their job is to develop applications and they often have tight deadlines. Hackers, on the other hand, may spend all their time trying to attack web applications. By adopting third party developer tools and security technology and platforms, developers will be able to increase the security of web applications.
Organizations need to incentivize developers to application security services and tools. Even some popular software development platforms like Gitlab and Github are releasing security capabilities to strengthen application security.
Adopting security automation
What is application security? It is practices and techniques that offer application data security. Protection from threats happens throughout the development life cycle. With progressive development methodologies, security testing isn’t left to just prior to a major release. It has become an integral part of the development of every update or new feature. Application security can span whole departments.
One of the cyber security trends in 2024 is more use of security automation. This enables security testing to happen through the software development life cycle(SDLC). Some areas where automation can be useful include:
- Static code analysis
- Deploying of virtual environments and containers
- Incident response
- Threat hunting
- Automation of workflows
Integrating AI and machine learning into app security solutions
Integrating the latest AI into app security solutions improves application security monitoring. It improves accuracy and speed when identifying vulnerabilities. AI is enabling automated security systems. They are capable of face detection, threat detection, etc. AI-driven data analytics programs can continually search for anomalies. Security teams no longer have to view live feeds. They will automatically receive alerts about suspicious activity. Developers are also using generative AI to troubleshoot and fix code at a much faster rate.
The problem is that attackers are also using AI and machine learning to automate attacks. They use it to create more convincing phishing emails, etc. This makes it essential for organizations to use the latest AI-driven threat detection systems. Only then can they respond to emerging threats promptly.
Adopting converged security strategies
With the breaking down of silos, potential security gaps can exist. Many organizations are integrating physical and virtual security systems, The adoption of integrated solutions is expected to grow in the years ahead.
A converged security strategy helps to minimize the risks of integration of security systems. This can prevent one team from unintentionally exposing vulnerabilities in an opposing system. All teams implement the organization’s operational policies and application security best practices.
Focusing on API security
Organizations today rely on APIs to share information and functionalities. This increases the attack surface. APIs are attractive targets for attackers. They may have vulnerabilities such as broken authentication. Attackers can take advantage of incorrectly applied authentication mechanisms.
Developers may rely on the client side to filter data before displaying it to users. This can create serious issues as filtering data should happen on the server side. Organizations need to use best practices to keep APIs secure. This may include:
- Access control for authentication
- Data encryption
- Rate limiting
- Dynamic application security testing (DAST)
Conclusion
Organizations must stay on top of the challenges that come with protecting applications. A combination of policies, practices, and tools is necessary for application security in cyber security. Application security has become a vital part of the software development life cycle. Considering it early and often is imperative. This helps to keep confidential data and resources from falling into the wrong hands.