Introduction

Application security describes security measures at the application level that aim to prevent
data or code within the app from being stolen or hijacked. It encompasses the security
considerations that happen during application development and design, but it also involves
systems and approaches to protect apps after they get deployed.
What is application security?
Application security is the process of developing, adding, and testing security features within
applications to prevent security vulnerabilities against threats such as unauthorized access and
modification.

Why application security is important?

Application security is important because today’s applications are often available over various
networks and connected to the cloud, increasing vulnerabilities to security threats and
breaches. There is increasing pressure and incentive to not only ensure security at the network
level but also within applications themselves. One reason for this is because hackers are going
after apps with their attacks more today than in the past. Application security testing can reveal
weaknesses at the application level, helping to prevent these attacks.

Why Application Security is Important?

Today's applications are frequently available over multiple networks and connected to
the cloud, they are more vulnerable to security attacks and breaches. There is
increasing pressure and incentive to assure security not only at the network level but
also within individual applications. One explanation for this is because hackers are
focusing their attacks on applications more now than in the past. Application security
testing can expose application-level flaws, assisting in the prevention of these attacks.
The faster and earlier you can detect and resolve security concerns in the software
development process, the safer your company will be. Because everyone makes
mistakes, the trick is to identify them as soon as possible.

Application security tools that integrate with your development environment can make
this process and workflow much easier and more efficient. These tools are especially
beneficial for compliance audits, as they can save time and resources by detecting
issues before the auditors notice them. The changing nature of how enterprise
applications are built over the last many years has aided the rapid expansion of the
application security industry.

What Are the Different Types of Application Security?

There are three major types covered in this article: web application security, API
security, and cloud-native application security.

 Web-App Security: A web application is a program available through the Internet and
operates on a web server. The client is accessed using a web browser. Applications,
by definition, must allow connections from clients across unsecured networks. This
exposes them to a variety of risks. Many online apps are mission-critical and include
sensitive customer data, making them an attractive target for attackers and a top
concern for any cyber security program.

 Web application security involves ensuring that security controls

are built into websites to protect them from attacks, and
identifying and fixing application design flaws and bugs, This is
achieved by scanning for vulnerabilities, updating code and
where possible, remediating vulnerabilities, by applying
application security tools and solutions throughout the software
development lifecycle, such as SAST (static application security
testing), DAST (dynamic application security testing), IAST
(interactive application security testing), SCA software
 composition analysis, penetration testing and runtime application
testing (RASP).

 API Security: APIs with security flaws are the root of major data breaches. They have
the potential to reveal sensitive data and disrupt vital corporate processes. API
security flaws include insufficient authentication, unintended data disclosure, and a
failure to apply rate restriction, which allows API abuse. The requirement for API
security, like the necessity for web application security, has led to the creation of
sophisticated equipment that can discover API vulnerabilities and protect APIs in
production.

 Cloud-Native Security: Infrastructure and environments are often built up

automatically in cloud-native apps depending on declarative configuration, known as
infrastructure as code (IaC). The developers are tasked with developing declarative
settings and application code, which should be secure. As everything is defined
during the development stage, shifting left is even more critical in cloud native
setups. Traditional testing techniques can help cloud-native apps, but they are
insufficient. Dedicated cloud-native security solutions are required, capable of
instrumenting vessels, container clusters, and serverless operations, reporting on
security concerns, and providing developers with a quick feedback loop.

 Cloud application security focuses on securing applications in

cloud environments, with an emphasis on managing access,
data protection, infrastructure security, logging and monitoring,
incident response, and vulnerability mitigation and configuration
analysis. There’s a strong element of policy and process
implementation here.

 Mobile application security is designed to assess the risk of

applications that run on mobile platforms for phones and tablets,
particularly Android, iOS, and Windows Phone. It assesses apps
for vulnerabilities based on the environments in which they run
and identifies problems that might arise from user behavior.
Testing is done by taking the role of a hacker or malicious actor
 and attempting to attack apps. Mobile app security combines
static and dynamic analysis and penetration testing.

Types of Application security

Web Application Security

A web application is software that runs on a web server and is accessible via the
Internet. The client runs in a web browser. By nature, applications must accept
connections from clients over insecure networks. This exposes them to a range of
vulnerabilities. Many web applications are business critical and contain sensitive
customer data, making them a valuable target for attackers and a high priority for
any cyber security program.

The evolution of the Internet has addressed some web application vulnerabilities –
such as the introduction of HTTPS, which creates an encrypted communication
channel that protects against man in the middle (MitM) attacks. However, many
vulnerabilities remain. The most severe and common vulnerabilities are documented
by the Open Web Application Security Project (OWASP), in the form of the OWASP
Top 10.

Due to the growing problem of web application security, many security vendors have
introduced solutions especially designed to secure web applications. Examples
include the web application firewall (WAF), a security tool designed to detect and
block application-layer attacks.

Mobile application security

 Mobile devices also transmit and receive information across the Internet, as opposed to a
private network, making them vulnerable to attack. Enterprises can use virtual private
networks (VPNs) to add a layer of mobile application security for employees who log in to
applications remotely. IT departments may also decide to vet mobile apps and make sure
they conform to company security policies before allowing employees to use them on mobile
devices that connect to the corporate network.

API Security
Application Programming Interfaces (API) are growing in importance. They are the
basis of modern microservices applications, and an entire API economy has emerged,
which allows organizations to share data and access software functionality created
by others. This means API security is critical for modern organizations.

APIs that suffer from security vulnerabilities are the cause of major data breaches.
They can expose sensitive data and result in disruption of critical business
operations. Common security weaknesses of APIs are weak authentication,
unwanted exposure of data, and failure to perform rate limiting, which enables API
abuse.

Like web application security, the need for API security has led to the development
of specialized tools that can identify vulnerabilities in APIs and secure APIs in
production.

Cloud Native Application Security

Cloud native applications are applications built in a microservices architecture using

technologies like virtual machines, containers, and serverless platforms. Cloud native
security is a complex challenge, because cloud native applications have a large
number of moving parts and components tend to be ephemeral—frequently torn
down and replaced by others. This makes it difficult to gain visibility over a cloud
native environment and ensure all components are secure.

In cloud native applications, infrastructure and environments are typically set up

automatically based on declarative configuration—this is called infrastructure as
code (IaC). Developers are responsible for building declarative configurations and
application code, and both should be subject to security considerations. Shifting left
is much more important in cloud native environments, because almost everything is
determined at the development stage.

Cloud native applications can benefit from traditional testing tools, but these tools
are not enough. Dedicated cloud native security tools are needed, able to instrument
containers, container clusters, and serverless functions, report on security issues,
and provide a fast feedback loop for developers.
Another important aspect of cloud native security is automated scanning of all
artifacts, at all stages of the development lifecycle. Most importantly, organizations
must scan container images at all stages of the development process.

Measures Taken To Achieve Application Security

Different types of application security features include authentication, authorization,
encryption, logging, and application security testing. Developers can also code applications to
reduce security vulnerabilities.

Authentication

When developers include protocols in an application to ensure that only authorized users have
access to it. Authentication procedures verify that the user is who they claim to be. When
logging into an application, this can be performed by requiring the user to supply a user name
and password. Multi-factor authentication necessitates the use of multiple forms of
authentication, such as something you know (a password), something you have (a mobile
device), and something you are (a biometric).

Authorization

A user may be authorized to access and use the application after being authenticated. By
comparing the user's identification to a list of authorized users, the system may verify that the
user has permission to access the application. In order for the application to match only
validated user credentials to the approved user list, authentication must take place before
authorization.

Encryption
Other security measures can safeguard sensitive data from being seen or utilized by a
cybercriminal after a user has been verified and is using the application. Traffic containing
sensitive data that flows between the end-user and the cloud in cloud-based applications can
be encrypted to keep the data safe.

Logging

If a security breach occurs in an application, logging can assist in determining who gained access
to the data and how they did so. Application log files keep track of which parts of the
application have been accessed and by whom.

Application Security Testing

A method that ensures that all of these security controls are functioning effectively.

Authentication, authorization, encryption, logging, and application security testing are all
examples of application security features. Developers can also use code to reduce
security flaws in applications.
Authentication

When developers include protocols in an application to ensure that only authorized

users have access to it. Authentication procedures verify that the user is who they claim
to be. When logging into an application, this can be performed by requiring the user to
supply a user name and password. Multi-factor authentication necessitates the use of
multiple forms of authentication, such as something you know (a password), something
you have (a mobile device), and something you are (a biometric).

Authorization

A user may be authorized to access and use the application after being authenticated.
By comparing the user's identification to a list of authorized users, the system may verify
that the user has permission to access the application. In order for the application to
match only validated user credentials to the approved user list, authentication must take
place before authorization.

Encryption

Other security measures can safeguard sensitive data from being seen or utilized by a
cybercriminal after a user has been verified and is using the application. Traffic
containing sensitive data that flows between the end-user and the cloud in cloud-based
applications can be encrypted to keep the data safe.

Logging

If a security breach occurs in an application, logging can assist in determining who

gained access to the data and how they did so. Application log files keep track of which
parts of the application have been accessed and by whom.

Application Security Testing

Application Security Testing (AST) is the process of making applications more

resilient to security threats by identifying and remediating security vulnerabilities. A
method that ensures that all of these security controls are functioning effectively.
Originally, AST was a manual process. In modern, high-velocity development
processes, AST must be automated. The increased modularity of enterprise software,
numerous open source components, and a large number of known vulnerabilities
and threat vectors all make automation essential. Most organizations use a
combination of application security tools to conduct AST.

Types Of Application Security Testing?

A complete application security approach aids in the detection, remediation, and
resolution of a variety of application vulnerabilities and security challenges. Solutions for
linking the impact of application security-related events to business outcomes are
included in the most effective and advanced application security plans.

Finding the right application security technologies for your company is crucial to the
effectiveness of any security measures your DevOps or security team implements.

Application security can be divided into numerous categories:

 Dynamic Application Security Test (DAST). This automated application

security test is best for internally facing, low-risk applications that must
comply with regulatory security assessments. For medium-risk applications
and critical applications undergoing minor changes, combining DAST with
some manual web security testing for common vulnerabilities is the best
solution.
 Static Application Security Test (SAST). This application security approach
offers automated and manual testing techniques. It is best for identifying bugs
 without the need to execute applications in a production environment. It also
enables developers to scan source code and systematically find and eliminate
software security vulnerabilities.
 Penetration Test. This manual application security test is best for critical
applications, especially those undergoing major changes. The assessment
involves business logic and adversary-based testing to discover advanced
attack scenarios.
 Runtime Application Self Protection (RASP). This evolving application
security approach encompasses a number of technological techniques to
instrument an application so that attacks can be monitored as they execute
and, ideally, blocked in real time.

 Static Application Security Testing (SAST)

SAST aids in the detection of code flaws by examining the application source files for the
root cause. The ability to compare static analysis scan results with real-time solutions
speeds up the detection of security problems, decreasing MTTR and enabling
collaborative troubleshooting.

 Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST)

DAST is a more proactive approach, simulating security breaches on a live web
application to deliver precise information about exploitable flaws. DAST is especially
useful for detecting runtime or environment-related errors because it evaluates
applications in production.

 Interactive Application Security Testing (IAST)

IAST combines parts of SAST and DAST by performing analysis in real-time or at any
moment during the development or production process from within the application. IAST
has access to all of the application's code and components, allowing it to produce more
accurate results and provide more in-depth access than previous versions.

 Run-time Application Security Protection (RASP)

RASP also works within the application, but it is more concerned with security than with
testing. RASP provides continuous security checks and automatic responses to possible
breaches, which includes terminating the session and informing IT teams.

 Application Security Tools and Solutions


 Web Application Firewall (WAF)
 A WAF monitors and filters HTTP traffic that passess between a web
application and the Internet. WAF technology does not cover all threats but
can work alongside a suite of security tools to create a holistic defense against
various attack vectors.
 In the open systems interconnection (OSI) model, WAF serves as a protocol
layer seven defense that helps protect web applications against attacks like
cross-site-scripting (XSS), cross-site forgery, SQL injection, and file inclusion.
 Unlike a proxy server that protects the identity of client machines through an
intermediary, a WAF works like a reverse proxy that protects the server from
exposure. The WAF serves as a shield that stands in front of a web application
and protects it from the Internet—clients pass through the WAF before they
can reach the server.
 Runtime Application Self-Protection (RASP)
 RASP technology can analyze user behavior and application traffic at runtime.
It aims to help detect and prevent cyber threats by achieving visibility into
application source code and analyzing vulnerabilities and weaknesses.
 RASP tools can identify security weaknesses that have already been exploited,
terminate these sessions, and issue alerts to provide active protection.
 Vulnerability Management
 Vulnerability management is a critical aspect of application security. It involves
identifying, classifying, prioritizing, and mitigating software vulnerabilities.
Vulnerability management tools scan your applications for known
vulnerabilities, such as those listed in the Common Vulnerabilities and
Exposures (CVE) database.
 Once identified, these vulnerabilities are classified based on their severity. The
next step is to prioritize the vulnerabilities that need to be addressed first. This
priority list helps organizations focus their efforts on the most critical security
issues. Finally, the vulnerabilities are mitigated, often through patch
management procedures.
 Software Bill of Materials (SBOM)
 A Software Bill of Materials (SBOM) is a comprehensive list of components in a
piece of software. It provides transparency into an application’s composition,
making it easier to track and manage any vulnerabilities. An SBOM can include
details about the open-source and proprietary components, libraries, and
modules used in the software.
 With an SBOM, organizations can quickly identify any components with known
vulnerabilities. It helps streamline the process of vulnerability management
and ensures a swift response when a security flaw is discovered. SBOM is
becoming increasingly important, especially with the rise of open-source
software and the associated security risks.
 Software Composition Analysis (SCA)
 SCA tools create an inventory of third-party open source and commercial
components used within software products. It helps learn which components
 and versions are actively used and identify severe security vulnerabilities
affecting these components.
 Organizations use SCA tools to find third-party components that may contain
security vulnerabilities.
 Static Application Security Testing (SAST)
 SAST tools assist white box testers in inspecting the inner workings of
applications. It involves inspecting static source code and reporting on
identified security weaknesses.
 SAST can help find issues, such as syntax errors, input validation issues, invalid
or insecure references, or math errors in non-compiled code. You can use
binary and byte-code analyzers to apply SAST to compiled code.
 Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST)
 DAST tools assist black box testers in executing code and inspecting it at
runtime. It helps detect issues that possibly represent security vulnerabilities.
Organizations use DAST to conduct large-scale scans that simulate multiple
malicious or unexpected test cases. These tests provide reports on the
application’s response.
 DAST can help identify issues such as query strings, the use of scripts, requests
and responses, memory leakage, authentication, cookie and session handling,
execution of third-party components, DOM injection, and data injection.
 Interactive Application Security Testing (IAST)
 IAST tools employ SAST and DAST techniques and tools to detect a wider
range of security issues. These tools run dynamically to inspect software
during runtime. It occurs from within the application server to inspect the
compiled source code.
 IAST tools can help make remediation easier by providing information about
the root cause of vulnerabilities and identifying specific lines of affected code.
These tools can analyze data flow, source code, configuration, and third-party
libraries. You can also use IAST tools for API testing.
 Mobile Application Security Testing (MAST)
 MAST tools employ various techniques to test the security of mobile
applications. It involves using static and dynamic analysis and investigating
forensic data collected by mobile applications.
 Organizations use MAST tools to check security vulnerabilities and mobile-
specific issues, such as jailbreaking, data leakage from mobile devices, and
malicious WiFi networks.
 Cloud Native Application Protection Platform(CNAPP)
 A cloud native application protection platform (CNAPP) provides a centralized
control panel for the tools required to protect cloud native applications. It
 unifies cloud workload protection platform (CWPP) and cloud security posture
management (CSPM) with other capabilities.
 CNAPP technology often incorporates identity entitlement management, API
discovery and protection, and automation and orchestration security for
container orchestration platforms like Kubernetes.

Key considerations before testing applications

Here are key considerations before you can properly test applications for security
vulnerabilities:

 Create a complete inventory of your applications.

 Understand the business use, impact and sensitivity of your applications.
 Determine which applications to test—start from public-facing systems like web and
mobile applications.

How to test

You must determine the following parameters before you can successfully test
applications for security vulnerabilities:

 Authenticated vs. non-authenticated testing—you can test applications from an

outsider’s perspective (a black box approach). However, there is a lot of value in
performing authenticated testing, to discover security issues that affect
authenticated users. This can help uncover vulnerabilities like SQL injection and
session manipulation.
 Which tools to use—testing should ideally involve tools that can identify
vulnerabilities in source code, tools that can test applications for security
weaknesses at runtime, and network vulnerability scanners.
 Testing production vs. staging—testing in production is important because it can
identify security issues that are currently threatening the organization and its
customers. However, production testing can have a performance impact. Testing in
staging is easier to achieve and allows faster remediation of vulnerabilities.
 Whether to disable security systems while testing—for most security tests, it is a
good idea to disable firewalls, web application firewalls (WAF), and intrusion
 prevention systems (IPS), or at least whitelist the IPs of testing tools, otherwise tools
can interfere with scanning. However, in a full penetration test, tools should be left
on and the goal is to scan applications while avoiding detection.
 When to test—it is typically advisable to perform security testing during off periods
to avoid an impact on performance and reliability of production applications.
 What to report—many security tools provide highly detailed reports relating to their
specific testing domain, and these reports are not consumable by non-security
experts. Security teams should extract the most relevant insights from automated
reports and present them in a meaningful way to stakeholders.
 Validation testing—a critical part of security testing is to validate that remediations
were done successfully. It is not enough for a developer to say the remediation is
fixed. You must rerun the test and ensure that the vulnerability no longer exists, or
otherwise give feedback to developers.

Types of Application Security Testing

There are three main types of application security tests:

Black Box Security Testing

In a black box test, the testing system does not have access to the internals of the
tested system. This is the perspective of an outside attacker. A testing tool or human
tester must perform reconnaissance to identify systems being tested and discover
vulnerabilities. Black box testing is highly valuable but is insufficient, because it
cannot test underlying security weaknesses of applications.

White Box Security Testing

In a white box test, the testing system has full access to the internals of the tested
application. A classic example is static code analysis, in which a testing tool has direct
access to the source code of the application. White box testing can identify business
logic vulnerabilities, code quality issues, security misconfigurations, and insecure
coding practices. White-box testing can also include dynamic testing, which leverages
fuzzing techniques to exercise different paths in the application and discover
unexpected vulnerabilities. The drawback of the white-box approach is that not all
these vulnerabilities will really be exploitable in production environments.
Gray Box Security Testing

In a gray-box test, the testing system has access to limited information about the
internals of the tested application. For example, the tester might be provided login
credentials so they can test the application from the perspective of a signed-in user.
Gray box testing can help understand what level of access privileged users have, and
the level of damage they could do if an account was compromised. Gray box tests
can simulate insider threats or attackers who have already breached the network
perimeter. Gray box testing is considered highly efficient, striking a balance between
the black box and white box approaches.

Application Security Approaches

Different approaches will uncover different subsets of the application's security flaws,
and they'll be most effective at different stages of the development lifecycle. They all
reflect the various time, effort, cost, and vulnerability trade-offs.

 Design Review
The architecture and design of the application can be examined for security flaws before
code is created. The construction of a threat model is a popular strategy used at this
phase.

 White-box Security Review or Code Review

A security engineer delves into the application by manually inspecting the source code
and looking for security issues. Vulnerabilities unique to the application can be
discovered through understanding the application.

 Black-box Security Audit

This is accomplished solely through the use of an application to test it for security flaws;
no source code is necessary.

 Automated Tooling
Many security tools can be automated by including them in the development or testing
process. Automated DAST/SAST tools that are incorporated into code editors or CI/CD
systems are examples.

 Coordinated Vulnerability Platform

Many websites and software providers offer hacker-powered application security
solutions through which individuals can be recognized and compensated for reporting
defects.

What are Application Security Risks?

Security issues with web applications range from large-scale network disruption to
focused database tampering. The following are some application security threats:

 A vulnerability known as cross-site scripting (XSS) allows an attacker to insert client-

side code into a webpage. This gives the attacker direct access to the user's sensitive
information.

 Remote attackers can use denial-of-service (DoS) and distributed denial-of-service

(DDoS) attacks to flood a targeted server or the infrastructure that supports it with
various types of traffic. This illegitimate traffic eventually prevents legitimate users from
accessing the server, causing it to shut down.

 SQL injection (SQLi) is a technique used by hackers to exploit database flaws. These
attacks, in particular, can reveal user identities and passwords, as well as enabling
attackers to edit or destroy data, as well as modify or create user rights.

 Hackers employ cross-site request forgery (CSRF) to mimic authorized users after
duping them into submitting an authorization request. Since their accounts have
additional permissions, high-level users are obviously frequent targets of this strategy,
and once the account is compromised, the attacker can remove, change, or destroy
data.

 Memory corruption occurs when bad actors execute a variety of attacks on an

application, they end up unintentionally changing some area of its memory. As a result,
the software exhibits unexpected behaviour or fails.

 The buffer overflow occurs when malicious code is injected into the system's
designated memory region. Overflowing the buffer zone's capacity causes surrounding
areas of the application's memory to be overwritten with data, posing a security risk.

Application security is crucial because software applications are often a primary

target for cyber attackers due to the potential for exploiting vulnerabilities in the
application code or configuration. By securing applications, organizations can
reduce the risk of unauthorized access, data breaches, and other security
incidents.

Some common practices and techniques used in application security include:

1. Secure coding: Writing code following secure coding practices to

minimize vulnerabilities such as buffer overflows, SQL injection, cross-
site scripting (XSS), and others.
2. Security testing: Conducting security testing such as penetration
testing, code reviews, and vulnerability scanning to identify and
remediate security flaws in applications.
3. Authentication and authorization: Implementing strong
authentication mechanisms and access controls to ensure that only
authorized users can access the application and its data.
 4. Encryption: Using encryption to protect data both in transit and at rest
to prevent unauthorized access.
5. Patch management: Keeping applications up to date with the latest
security patches to address known vulnerabilities.
6. Secure configuration: Configuring applications securely by disabling
unnecessary services, using secure defaults, and following best
practices.
7. Secure development lifecycle (SDLC): Incorporating security into
every phase of the software development lifecycle, from design to
deployment, to build secure applications from the ground up.
8. Incident response: Having a well-defined incident response plan to
respond to security incidents promptly and effectively.

Vulnerabilities of Application Security

 Cryptographic Failure: When data is not adequately safeguarded in transit and at rest,
cryptographic failures (formerly known as "sensitive data exposure") occur. It has the
potential to reveal credentials, health information, credit card details, and personal
information.

 Injection Attacks: Threat actors can use injection vulnerabilities to convey malicious
information to a web application interpreter. It has the potential to assemble and execute this
data on the server. SQL injection is a popular type of injection, which we already covered in
our introduction for this video.

 Outdated Components: Vulnerable and out-of-date components (formerly known as "using

components with known vulnerabilities") encompass any vulnerability caused by obsolete or
unsupported software. It can happen if you develop or use an application without learning
about its core components and versions.

 Authentication Failure: Identification and authentication failures (formerly known as "broken

authentication") encompass any security issue involving user identities. Identity attacks and
exploitation may be avoided by implementing secure session administration, authentication,
and validation for all identities.

Protection Against Application Security Vulnerabilities

 Web-Application Firewall: A web application firewall (WAF) monitors and filters HTTP
traffic between a web application and the World Wide Web. WAF architecture does
not address all risks, but it may be used with a portfolio of security solutions to
 provide a comprehensive defense against diverse attack routes. WAF is a protocol
layer seven protection in the open systems interconnection (OSI) paradigm that helps
defend online applications against attacks such as cross-site scripting (XSS), cross-
site fraud, SQL injection, and file inclusion.

 Threat Assessment: A list of sensitive assets will help you understand the threat to
your firm. Consider how a hacker can infiltrate an application, if existing security
protections are in place, and whether additional tools or defense capabilities are
required. Keep your security expectations in check. Nothing is indecipherable, even
with the most rigorous security measures.

 Privilege Management: Limiting privileges is vital for mission-critical and sensitive

systems. The Least Privilege principle states that access to programs and data
should be limited to those who require them. Hackers may compromise less
privileged accounts and ensure they do not acquire access to susceptible systems.

Application Security Approaches

Different approaches will uncover different subsets of the application's security flaws, and
they'll be most effective at different stages of the development lifecycle. They all reflect the
various time, effort, cost, and vulnerability trade-offs.

 Design Review
The architecture and design of the application can be examined for security flaws before
code is created. The construction of a threat model is a popular strategy used at this
phase.

 White-box Security Review or Code Review

A security engineer delves into the application by manually inspecting the source code
and looking for security issues. Vulnerabilities unique to the application can be
discovered through understanding the application.

 Black-box Security Audit

This is accomplished solely through the use of an application to test it for security flaws;
no source code is necessary.
  Automated Tooling
Many security tools can be automated by including them in the development or testing
process. Automated DAST/SAST tools that are incorporated into code editors or CI/CD
systems are examples.

 Coordinated Vulnerability Platform

Many websites and software providers offer hacker-powered application security
solutions through which individuals can be recognized and compensated for reporting
defects.

What are Application Security Risks?

Security issues with web applications range from large-scale network disruption to focused
database tampering. The following are some application security threats:

 A vulnerability known as cross-site scripting (XSS) allows an attacker to insert client-side

code into a webpage. This gives the attacker direct access to the user's sensitive
information.

 Remote attackers can use denial-of-service (DoS) and distributed denial-of-service

(DDoS) attacks to flood a targeted server or the infrastructure that supports it with
various types of traffic. This illegitimate traffic eventually prevents legitimate users from
accessing the server, causing it to shut down.

 SQL injection (SQLi) is a technique used by hackers to exploit database flaws. These
attacks, in particular, can reveal user identities and passwords, as well as enabling
attackers to edit or destroy data, as well as modify or create user rights.

 Hackers employ cross-site request forgery (CSRF) to mimic authorized users after duping
them into submitting an authorization request. Since their accounts have additional
permissions, high-level users are obviously frequent targets of this strategy, and once
the account is compromised, the attacker can remove, change, or destroy data.
  Memory corruption occurs when bad actors execute a variety of attacks on an
application, they end up unintentionally changing some area of its memory. As a result,
the software exhibits unexpected behaviour or fails.

 The buffer overflow occurs when malicious code is injected into the system's designated
memory region. Overflowing the buffer zone's capacity causes surrounding areas of the
application's memory to be overwritten with data, posing a security risk.

Application Security and APM

There is a symbiotic relationship between application performance management and

application security. Improved visibility into highly distributed or complex environments, such
as microservices architecture and cloud applications, is possible with an effective APM strategy.

By providing a full picture of an application's infrastructure and components, measuring ideal

performance with dynamic baselining, and alerting when discrepancies or abnormalities are
identified, the APM data can assist improve software security. When combined with application
security solutions, APM can provide redundancy and additional support for your safety program
by increasing the depth of information about the inner workings of your application and
system.

Application security aims to protect software application code and data against cyber
threats. You can and should apply application security during all phases of
development, including design, development, and deployment.

Here are several ways to promote application security throughout the software
development lifecycle (SDLC):
 Introduce security standards and tools during design and application development
phases. For example, include vulnerability scanning during early development.
 Implement security procedures and systems to protect applications in production
environments. For example, perform continuous security testing.
 Implement strong authentication for applications that contain sensitive data or are
mission critical.
 Use security systems such as firewalls, web application firewalls (WAF), and intrusion
prevention systems (IPS).

Application Security Approaches

Different approaches will uncover different subsets of the application's security flaws, and
they'll be most effective at different stages of the development lifecycle. They all reflect the
various time, effort, cost, and vulnerability trade-offs.

 Design Review
The architecture and design of the application can be examined for security flaws before
code is created. The construction of a threat model is a popular strategy used at this
phase.

 White-box Security Review or Code Review

A security engineer delves into the application by manually inspecting the source code
and looking for security issues. Vulnerabilities unique to the application can be
discovered through understanding the application.

 Black-box Security Audit

This is accomplished solely through the use of an application to test it for security flaws;
no source code is necessary.

 Automated Tooling
Many security tools can be automated by including them in the development or testing
process. Automated DAST/SAST tools that are incorporated into code editors or CI/CD
systems are examples.
  Coordinated Vulnerability Platform
Many websites and software providers offer hacker-powered application security
solutions through which individuals can be recognized and compensated for reporting
defects.

What are Application Security Risks?

Security issues with web applications range from large-scale network disruption to focused
database tampering. The following are some application security threats:

 A vulnerability known as cross-site scripting (XSS) allows an attacker to insert client-side

code into a webpage. This gives the attacker direct access to the user's sensitive
information.

 Remote attackers can use denial-of-service (DoS) and distributed denial-of-service

(DDoS) attacks to flood a targeted server or the infrastructure that supports it with
various types of traffic. This illegitimate traffic eventually prevents legitimate users from
accessing the server, causing it to shut down.

 SQL injection (SQLi) is a technique used by hackers to exploit database flaws. These
attacks, in particular, can reveal user identities and passwords, as well as enabling
attackers to edit or destroy data, as well as modify or create user rights.

 Hackers employ cross-site request forgery (CSRF) to mimic authorized users after duping
them into submitting an authorization request. Since their accounts have additional
permissions, high-level users are obviously frequent targets of this strategy, and once
the account is compromised, the attacker can remove, change, or destroy data.

 Memory corruption occurs when bad actors execute a variety of attacks on an

application, they end up unintentionally changing some area of its memory. As a result,
the software exhibits unexpected behaviour or fails.
  The buffer overflow occurs when malicious code is injected into the system's designated
memory region. Overflowing the buffer zone's capacity causes surrounding areas of the
application's memory to be overwritten with data, posing a security risk.

Application Security and APM

There is a symbiotic relationship between application performance management and

application security. Improved visibility into highly distributed or complex environments, such
as microservices architecture and cloud applications, is possible with an effective APM strategy.

By providing a full picture of an application's infrastructure and components, measuring ideal

performance with dynamic baselining, and alerting when discrepancies or abnormalities are
identified, the APM data can assist improve software security. When combined with application
security solutions, APM can provide redundancy and additional support for your safety program
by increasing the depth of information about the inner workings of your application and
system.

Application Security Risks

Web Application Security Risks: OWASP Top 10

Software applications can be affected by numerous threats. The Open Web

Application Security Project (OWASP) Top 10 list includes critical application threats
that are most likely to affect applications in production.

Broken Access Control

Broken access control allows threats and users to gain unauthorized access and
privileges. Here are the most common issues:
 It enables attackers to gain unauthorized access to user accounts and act as
administrators or regular users.
 It provides users with unauthorized privileged functions.

You can remediate this issue by implementing strong access mechanisms that ensure
each role is clearly defined with isolated privileges.

Cryptographic Failures

Cryptographic failures (previously referred to as “sensitive data exposure”) occur

when data is not properly protected in transit and at rest. It can expose passwords,
health records, credit card numbers, and personal data.

This application security risk can lead to non-compliance with data privacy
regulations, such as the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), and financial
standards like PCI Data Security Standards (PCI DSS).

Injection (Including XSS, LFI, and SQL Injection)

Injection vulnerabilities enable threat actors to send malicious data to a web

application interpreter. It can cause this data to be compiled and executed on the
server. SQL injection is a common form of injection.

Learn more in the detailed guides to:

 Cross Site Scripting (XSS)

 Local file injection (LFI)
 SQL injection (SQLi)
 Cross Site Request Forgery (CSRF)

Insecure Design

Insecure design covers many application weaknesses that occur due to ineffective or
missing security controls. Applications that do not have basic security controls
capable of against critical threats. While you can fix implementation flaws in
applications with secure design, it is not possible to fix insecure design with proper
configuration or remediation.
 Security Misconfiguration (Including XXE)

Security misconfigurations occur due to a lack of security hardening across the

application stack. Here are common security misconfigurations:

 Improperly configuring cloud service permissions

 Leaving unrequired features enabled or installed
 Using default passwords or admin accounts
 XML External Entities (XXE) vulnerabilities

Vulnerable and Outdated Components

Vulnerable and outdated components (previously referred to as “using components

with known vulnerabilities”) include any vulnerability resulting from outdated or
unsupported software. It can occur when you build or use an application without
prior knowledge of its internal components and versions.

Identification and Authentication Failures

Identification and authentication failures (previously referred to as “broken

authentication”) include any security problem related to user identities. You can
protect against identity attacks and exploits by establishing secure session
management and setting up authentication and verification for all identities.

Software and Data Integrity Failures

Software and data integrity failures occur when infrastructure and code are
vulnerable to integrity violations. It can occur during software updates, sensitive data
modification, and any CI/CD pipeline changes that are not validated. Insecure CI/CD
pipelines can result in unauthorized access and lead to supply chain attacks.

Security Logging and Monitoring Failures

Security logging and monitoring failures (previously referred to as “insufficient

logging and monitoring”) occur when application weaknesses cannot properly detect
and respond to security risks. Logging and monitoring are critical to the detection of
breaches. When these mechanisms do not work, it hinders the application’s visibility
and compromises alerting and forensics.
Server Side Request Forgery

Server-side request forgery (SSRF) vulnerabilities occur when a web application does
not validate a URL inputted by a user before pulling data from a remote resource. It
can affect firewall-protected servers and any network access control list (ACL) that
does not validate URLs.

API Security Risks: OWASP Top 10

APIs enable communication between different pieces of software. Applications with

APIs allow external clients to request services from the application. APIs are exposed
to various threats and vulnerabilities. The OWASP compiled a list prioritizing the top
10 API security risks.

Broken Object Level Authorization

APIs often expose endpoints handling object identifiers. It creates a wider attack
surface Level Access Control issue. Instead, you should check object level
authorization in every function that can access a data source through user inputs.

Broken User Authentication

Incorrectly implemented authentication mechanisms can grant unauthorized access

to malicious actors. It enables attackers to exploit an implementation flaw or
compromise authentication tokens. Once it occurs, attackers can assume a legitimate
user identity permanently or temporarily. As a result, the system’s ability to identify
a client or user is compromised, which threatens the overall API security of the
application.

Excessive Data Exposure

Generic implementations often lead to exposure of all object properties without

consideration of the individual sensitivity of each object. It occurs when developers
rely on clients to perform data filtering before displaying the information to the user.

Lack of Resources & Rate Limiting

 APIs usually do not impose restrictions on the number or size of resources a client or
user is allowed to request. However, this issue can impact the performance of the
API server and result in Denial of Service (DoS). Additionally, it can create
authentication flaws that enable brute force attacks.

Broken Function Level Authorization

Authorization flaws enable attackers to gain unauthorized access to the resources of

legitimate users or obtain administrative privileges. It can occur as a result of overly
complex access control policies based on different hierarchies, roles, groups, and
unclear separation between regular and administrative functions.

Mass Assignment

Mass assignment is usually a result of improperly binding data provided by clients,

like JSON, to data models. It occurs when binding happens without using properties
filtering based on an allowlist. It enables attackers to guess object properties, read
the documentation, explore other API endpoints, or provide additional object
properties to request payloads.

Security Misconfiguration

Security misconfiguration usually occurs due to:

 Insecure default configurations

 Open cloud storage
 Ad-hoc or incomplete configurations
 Misconfigured HTTP headers
 Permissive cross-origin resource sharing (CORS)
 Unnecessary HTTP methods
 Verbose error messages that contain sensitive information

Injection

Injection flaws like command injection, SQL, and NoSQL injection occur when a query
or command sends untrusted data to an interpreter. It is typically malicious data that
attempts to trick the interpreter into providing unauthorized access to data or
executing unintended commands.
Improper Assets Management

APIs usually expose more endpoints than traditional web applications. This nature of
APIs means proper and updated documentation becomes critical to security.
Additionally, proper hosts and deployed API versions inventory can help mitigate
issues related to exposed debug endpoints and deprecated API versions.

Insufficient Logging & Monitoring

Insufficient logging and monitoring enable threat actors to escalate their attacks,
especially when there is ineffective or no integration with incident response. It allows
malicious actors to maintain persistence and pivot to other systems where they
extract, destroy, or tamper with data.

What are application security controls?

 Application security controls are techniques to enhance the security of an application at the
coding level, making it less vulnerable to threats. Many of these controls deal with how the
application responds to unexpected inputs that a cybercriminal might use to exploit a
weakness. A programmer can write code for an application in such a way that the
programmer has more control over the outcome of these unexpected inputs. Fuzzing is a
type of application security testing where developers test the results of unexpected values or
inputs to discover which ones cause the application to act in an unexpected way that might
open a security hole.

Application Security Best Practices

Here are several best practices that can help you practice application security more
effectively.

Perform a Threat Assessment

Having a list of sensitive assets to protect can help you understand the threat your
organization is facing and how to mitigate them. Consider what methods a hacker
can use to compromise an application, whether existing security measures are in,
and if you need additional tools or defensive measures.
It is also important to be realistic about your security expectations. Even with the
highest level of protection, nothing is impossible to hack. You also need to be honest
about what you think your team can sustain over the long term. If you push too hard,
safety standards and practices can be ignored. Remember that safety is a long-term
endeavor and you need the cooperation of other employees and your customers.

Shift Security Left

Companies are transitioning from annual product releases to monthly, weekly, or

daily releases. To accommodate this change, security testing must be part of the
development cycle, not added as an afterthought. This way, security testing doesn’t
get in the way when you release your product.

A good first step before making these changes is to help security staff understand
development processes and build relationships between security and development
teams. Security staff need to learn the tools and processes used by developers, so
that they can integrate security organically. When security is seamlessly integrated
into the development process, developers are more likely to embrace it and build
trust.

You also need to find a way to automate security testing for CI/CD pipelines.
Integrating automated security tools into the CI/CD pipeline allows developers to
quickly fix issues a short time after the relevant changes were introduced.

Prioritize Your Remediation Ops

Vulnerabilities are growing, and developers find it difficult to address remediation for
all issues. Given the scale of the task at hand, prioritization is critical for teams that
want to keep applications safe.

Effective prioritization requires performing a threat assessment based on the

severity of the vulnerability—using CVSS ratings and other criteria, such as the
operational importance of the affected application. When it comes to open source
vulnerabilities, you need to know whether proprietary code is actually using the
vulnerable feature of open source components. If the function of the vulnerable
component is never invoked by your product, then its CVSS rating is significant, but
there is no impact and no risk.
 Measure Application Security Results

It is important to measure and report the success of your application security

program. Identify the metrics that are most important to your key decision makers
and present them in an easy-to-understand and actionable way to get buy-in for your
program.

Giving executives too many metrics at an early stage can be overwhelming and
frankly unnecessary. The main goal is to indicate how the application security
program is compliant with internal policies and show the impact in terms of
reduction of vulnerabilities and risks and increased application resilience.

Manage Privileges

It is important to limit privileges, especially for mission critical and sensitive systems.
Application security best practices limit access to applications and data to those who
need them, when they need them—this is known as the least privilege principle.
Least privilege is critical for two reasons:

 Hackers might compromise less privileged accounts, and it is important to ensure

that they cannot gain access to sensitive systems.
 Insider threats are just as dangerous as external attackers. If insiders go bad, it is
important to ensure that they never have more privileges than they should—limiting
the damage they can do.