The authors look at the problem of bad code in a new way. Packed with advice based on the authors' decades of experience in the computer security field, this concise and highly readable book explains why so much code today is filled with vulnerabilities, and tells readers what they must do to avoid writing code that can be exploited by attackers. Writing secure code isn't easy, and there are no quick fixes to bad code. To build code that repels attack, readers need to be vigilant through each stage of the entire code lifecycle: Architecture, Design, Implementation, Testing and Operations. Beyond the technical, Secure Coding sheds new light on the economic, psychological, and sheer practical reasons why security vulnerabilities are so ubiquitous today. It presents a new way of thinking about these vulnerabilities and ways that developers can compensate for the factors that have produced such unsecured software in the past.
Howard and LeBlanc (both are security experts with Microsoft) discuss the need for security and outline its general principles before outlining secure coding techniques. Testing, installation, documentation, and error messages are also covered. Appendices discuss dangerous APIs, dismiss pathetic excuses, and provide security checklists. The book explains how systems can be attacked, uses anecdotes to illustrate common mistakes, and offers advice on making systems secure. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR.
Proven Methods for Building Secure Java-Based Web Applications Develop, deploy, and maintain secure Java applications using the expert techniques and open source libraries described in this Oracle Press guide. Iron-Clad Java presents the processes required to build robust and secure applications from the start and explains how to eliminate existing security bugs. Best practices for authentication, access control, data protection, attack prevention, error handling, and much more are included. Using the practical advice and real-world examples provided in this authoritative resource, you'll gain valuable secure software engineering skills. Establish secure authentication and session management processes Implement a robust access control design for multi-tenant web applications Defend against cross-site scripting, cross-site request forgery, and clickjacking Protect sensitive data while it is stored or in transit Prevent SQL injection and other injection attacks Ensure safe file I/O and upload Use effective logging, error handling, and intrusion detection methods Follow a comprehensive secure software development lifecycle "In this book, Jim Manico and August Detlefsen tackle security education from a technical perspective and bring their wealth of industry knowledge and experience to application designers. A significant amount of thought was given to include the most useful and relevant security content for designers to defend their applications. This is not a book about security theories, it’s the hard lessons learned from those who have been exploited, turned into actionable items for application designers, and condensed into print."—From the Foreword by Milton Smith, Oracle Senior Principal Security Product Manager, Java
"In the Java world, security is not viewed as an add-on a feature. It is a pervasive way of thinking. Those who forget to think in a secure mindset end up in trouble. But just because the facilities are there doesn't mean that security is assured automatically. A set of standard practices has evolved over the years. The Secure(R) Coding(R) Standard for Java(TM) is a compendium of these practices. These are not theoretical research papers or product marketing blurbs. This is all serious, mission-critical, battle-tested, enterprise-scale stuff." --James A. Gosling, Father of the Java Programming Language An essential element of secure coding in the Java programming language is a well-documented and enforceable coding standard. Coding standards encourage programmers to follow a uniform set of rules determined by the requirements of the project and organization, rather than by the programmer's familiarity or preference. Once established, these standards can be used as a metric to evaluate source code (using manual or automated processes). The CERT(R) Oracle(R) Secure Coding Standard for Java(TM) provides rules designed to eliminate insecure coding practices that can lead to exploitable vulnerabilities. Application of the standard's guidelines will lead to higher-quality systems-robust systems that are more resistant to attack. Such guidelines are required for the wide range of products coded in Java-for devices such as PCs, game players, mobile phones, home appliances, and automotive electronics. After a high-level introduction to Java application security, seventeen consistently organized chapters detail specific rules for key areas of Java development. For each area, the authors present noncompliant examples and corresponding compliant solutions, show how to assess risk, and offer references for further information. Each rule is prioritized based on the severity of consequences, likelihood of introducing exploitable vulnerabilities, and cost of remediation. The standard provides secure coding rules for the Java SE 6 Platform including the Java programming language and libraries, and also addresses new features of the Java SE 7 Platform. It describes language behaviors left to the discretion of JVM and compiler implementers, guides developers in the proper use of Java's APIs and security architecture, and considers security concerns pertaining to standard extension APIs (from the javax package hierarchy).The standard covers security issues applicable to these libraries: lang, util, Collections, Concurrency Utilities, Logging, Management, Reflection, Regular Expressions, Zip, I/O, JMX, JNI, Math, Serialization, and JAXP.
What every software professional should know about security. Designing Secure Software consolidates Loren Kohnfelder’s more than twenty years of experience into a concise, elegant guide to improving the security of technology products. Written for a wide range of software professionals, it emphasizes building security into software design early and involving the entire team in the process. The book begins with a discussion of core concepts like trust, threats, mitigation, secure design patterns, and cryptography. The second part, perhaps this book’s most unique and important contribution to the field, covers the process of designing and reviewing a software design with security considerations in mind. The final section details the most common coding flaws that create vulnerabilities, making copious use of code snippets written in C and Python to illustrate implementation vulnerabilities. You’ll learn how to: • Identify important assets, the attack surface, and the trust boundaries in a system • Evaluate the effectiveness of various threat mitigation candidates • Work with well-known secure coding patterns and libraries • Understand and prevent vulnerabilities like XSS and CSRF, memory flaws, and more • Use security testing to proactively identify vulnerabilities introduced into code • Review a software design for security flaws effectively and without judgment Kohnfelder’s career, spanning decades at Microsoft and Google, introduced numerous software security initiatives, including the co-creation of the STRIDE threat modeling framework used widely today. This book is a modern, pragmatic consolidation of his best practices, insights, and ideas about the future of software.
Targets software engineering students - one of the only security texts to target this audience. Focuses on the white-hat side of the security equation rather than the black-hat side. Includes many practical and real-world examples that easily translate into the workplace. Covers a one-semester undergraduate course. Describes all aspects of computer security as it pertains to the job of a software engineer and presents problems similar to that which an engineer will encounter in the industry.
"Organizations worldwide rely on Java code to perform mission-critical tasks, and therefore that code must be reliable, robust, fast, maintainable, and secure. JavaTM Coding Guidelines brings together expert guidelines, recommendations, and code examples to help you meet these demands."--Publisher description.
The First Expert Guide to Static Analysis for Software Security! Creating secure code requires more than just good intentions. Programmers need to know that their code will be safe in an almost infinite number of scenarios and configurations. Static source code analysis gives users the ability to review their work with a fine-toothed comb and uncover the kinds of errors that lead directly to security vulnerabilities. Now, there’s a complete guide to static analysis: how it works, how to integrate it into the software development processes, and how to make the most of it during security code review. Static analysis experts Brian Chess and Jacob West look at the most common types of security defects that occur today. They illustrate main points using Java and C code examples taken from real-world security incidents, showing how coding errors are exploited, how they could have been prevented, and how static analysis can rapidly uncover similar mistakes. This book is for everyone concerned with building more secure software: developers, security engineers, analysts, and testers.
In this comprehensive guide spanning six insightful topics, you'll embark on a journey through the critical aspects of secure software development. From understanding the intricacies of authentication and authorization to mastering the art of validation, encoding, and robust error handling, this book equips you with the essential skills to fortify your code against vulnerabilities. Explore the intricacies of data security and discover how to safeguard sensitive information. Finally, unravel the complexities of configuration and deployment to ensure your software is resilient in the ever-evolving tech landscape. Whether you're a seasoned developer or just starting your coding journey, this book will empower you to build trusted and resilient software systems.
Modern web applications are built on a tangle of technologies that have been developed over time and then haphazardly pieced together. Every piece of the web application stack, from HTTP requests to browser-side scripts, comes with important yet subtle security consequences. To keep users safe, it is essential for developers to confidently navigate this landscape. In The Tangled Web, Michal Zalewski, one of the world’s top browser security experts, offers a compelling narrative that explains exactly how browsers work and why they’re fundamentally insecure. Rather than dispense simplistic advice on vulnerabilities, Zalewski examines the entire browser security model, revealing weak points and providing crucial information for shoring up web application security. You’ll learn how to: –Perform common but surprisingly complex tasks such as URL parsing and HTML sanitization –Use modern security features like Strict Transport Security, Content Security Policy, and Cross-Origin Resource Sharing –Leverage many variants of the same-origin policy to safely compartmentalize complex web applications and protect user credentials in case of XSS bugs –Build mashups and embed gadgets without getting stung by the tricky frame navigation policy –Embed or host user-supplied content without running into the trap of content sniffing For quick reference, "Security Engineering Cheat Sheets" at the end of each chapter offer ready solutions to problems you’re most likely to encounter. With coverage extending as far as planned HTML5 features, The Tangled Web will help you create secure web applications that stand the test of time.
