What is Secure Coding?
Secure coding refers to the practice of writing robust programs capable of resisting attacks from malicious actors or malware. On the internet, software vulnerabilities are frequently exploited for attacks or used as entry points by malware. Many of these vulnerabilities stem from careless design or programming errors. Secure coding is a general term for coding practices aimed at preventing such vulnerabilities.
For example, in web applications, input received from forms should always be sanitized—that is, stripped of harmful characters that could be used in attacks. In secure coding, the principle of "never trust any input" is paramount. Even when receiving data that is not expected by the program, secure coding ensures that the application responds predictably and safely through rigorous input validation. This is the first step toward secure coding.
Additionally, leveraging tools, frameworks, and guidelines provided by OWASP (The Open Web Application Security Project)—a global, open community focused on addressing web application security challenges—can significantly enhance the security of web applications.
However, applying secure coding practices comprehensively to every web application is not an easy task. A practical solution for this challenge is the implementation of a Web Application Firewall (WAF). A WAF monitors application-level communication and can block traffic deemed malicious or suspicious. Notable examples of such solutions include F5 BIG-IP, which offers robust protection against web application attacks.