Secure Coding Practices for Modern Apps Secure coding means building software with security in mind at every step—from design to deployment. Modern apps face many threats across web, mobile, and cloud. Clear practices help teams stay safe and move fast.
Core practices Validate all input and encode output. Never trust user data; enforce length limits and sanitize to prevent injection and XSS. Use parameterized queries or ORM safeguards to stop SQL injection. Keep third‑party libraries up to date. Use a software bill of materials (SBOM) and monitor feeds for known vulnerabilities. Protect data at rest and in transit. Encrypt sensitive data, manage keys in a secure vault, and use TLS for all network traffic. Strengthen authentication and authorization. Prefer MFA, short‑lived tokens, and proper session handling. Apply the principle of least privilege. Limit what each service and user can do; isolate components. Favor secure defaults and disable unused features. Review feature flags and configuration often. Handle errors carefully. Do not reveal internal details; redact secrets and monitor for anomalous activity. Practice secure SDLC and threat modeling. Design with security goals, perform reviews, and test early. Practical examples When accepting a user name, trim spaces, enforce length, and reject harmful characters. For data access, prefer prepared statements and parameterized queries to avoid SQL tricks. For passwords, store only salted hashes using a modern algorithm like Argon2 or bcrypt, not plain text. For tokens, use short expiry times and rotate keys.
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