With so much happening in the world of software application development, there is always a threat of loss, theft, failure, and what-not. Could you imagine using an application which poses the danger of security issues? Also, a business cannot risk its presence and brand value by implicating itself by introducing apps that have security challenges. The security of all developed apps is of utmost importance as it defines how well-performing the app is.
If facts are to be believed, then it is estimated that the average cost of a data breach could exceed $150 million in 2020.
Software development companies tend to develop apps, be it web, mobile, enterprise or custom, ensuring that it fulfills the security concerns as well. They cannot just launch the app without securing it from threats, viruses, malware, information leaks and more. Many software development companies take the security aspect during the development of the app very seriously and push various measures to assure it.
We shall share 7 software application development company best security practices that every business should abide by to create an app that is not only useful but also safe.
1. Simple Security Measures
To get the highest security level and measures in the software application, many software development companies tend to have various complex software security measures. This simply complicates the overall process and makes it difficult for the team and system to comprehend the actual need for security. The simpler the process, the easier it would be for the system to function and operate. Few practices that could be adopted are:
•Eradicate the use of complex architecture and coding with double negatives
•Follow the centralized approach
•Integrate security tools in developer comfortable areas
2. Understand the Technology
Before working on the security aspect of the software application, it’s important to know on what technology your application is based. The complexity of infrastructural components, the network segregation, the hardware and software alignment, all make a software application workable and functional. The interplay of application components is important to know so that security measures can be planned and implemented as needed in the system.
3. Governance, Risk, and Compliance
The next practice that custom software development company takes is to look at the governance, risk, and compliance as per the industry norm to meet the regulatory and privacy requirements. This is an essential practice as all the technological development need to adhere to government policies. The internal and external policies governing the business need to be mapped to ensure necessary security controls. Also, once the security measures are implemented in the application, it should comply with the GRC policies.
4. High-level Authentication
In the case of mobile security, the best mobile app development company could do is to include high-level authentication to safeguard the user’s data on the mobile phone. These days, almost all transactions are done over the mobile phone. This includes financial transactions as well. The high-level authentication allows companies to ensure that it’s the genuine and authentic user who is making the financial transaction and not some hacker. This could include alphanumeric passwords, OTPs, a combination of static password and instant OTP on the mobile number, biometrics, fingerprint, and retina-based authentication.
5. Fewer Privileges
Another best practice adopted by software development companies is to provide less privileged to the users over the software application. It is a must for app code security. There are situations when hackers, unauthentic visits from unauthorized parties could tamper the codes of the software applications. To minimize or even eradicate the challenge, its best to provide fewer privileges. Also, the privilege to go into the depth of the app should only be provided to those who are extremely critical, important, and related to the project.
6. Cryptography Tools and Techniques
Without proper tools and techniques, even software development companies can taste failure to maintain the security of the application. The way to ensure security in the application is by using good protocols for encryption such as AES and SHA256. Also, the software development company should avoid storing the keys on local devices for any unauthorized person to access it. The usage of latest and trusted encryption methods will make way for the best security measures taken in the software application.
7. Testing
Last but not least, testing remains the basic and traditional approach to ensure that security is maintained in the software application. Testing is the best practice as it can be used even during the development of the software application. When the developers are developing the app, testing can be persuaded at each step ensuring that it meets the security standards repeatedly without fail. Source code analysis and unit testing validate the changes in the source code thus projecting vulnerability in the application, penetration testing, threat modeling, emulators are a few ways that can be used to test the application at any point in time ensuring its safety and security.
Conclusion
Wrapping up, software development companies tend to improve their applications so that they can attain maximum users based on the level of services they are providing. Security is one such feature of software application that businesses can boast about as more and more emphasis is over security only. Many custom software development companies take advantage of security measures to develop applications be it mobile or web as per the security standards. The better the security, the higher the chances of the app being successful in the industry.
Author-
Siya Carla is the Solution Consultant at Finoit Technologies, a leading custom software development company that provides unique web design and mobile app development services. By creating interactive mobile apps for 450+ customers across the globe, Finoit enjoys a great reputation as a prominent mobile app development company.