Essay Sample on Securing Your Software: Best Practices in the SDLC

Introduction

Security software outlines software that provides security for a network. Software design is a model in which it transforms user requirements in suitable ways and helps the programmer in software coding. It is a collection of design decisions, and most companies undertake a common practice in monitoring the security issues in the development stages of the software development lifecycle (SDLC). A phase that succeeds during the design process inherits vulnerabilities and enhance security measures. The best approach to implementing the secure software design is integrating security aspects into the SDLC phases as it reduces costs associated with threats. The paper analyzes how to create a secure software design.

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Costs associated with insecure software designs are always higher. Hence secure protocols aim at minimizing security risks, enhance safety and compliance. In the analysis stage, there is a need to employ the case of combination associated with misuse and use. Security protocols ensure that they foresee the threats of the software and evaluate them in the misuse case. However, they have to be analyzed by implementing mitigation actions in the use case. For instance, people who are trying to access consumers' applications are stated to be under the misuse case, and the attempts should be logged and outlined by the SIEM system is a use case. It is essential to conduct risk assessments and develop risk profiles by following guidelines from various sources. In analyzing risks, the surfaces used should be sensitive to malicious attacks and security risks. In evaluating effective, secure software design, it is crucial to monitor the design stage, development, review codes, conduct testing, analyze the production, and the security costs of the software. The models of enhancing a secure software design are;

Perform Threat Modelling

Threat modeling optimizes network securities by identifying vulnerabilities and countermeasures, reducing the impacts of threats. It is a set of well-organized processes that architects and application developers use to develop security mechanisms. The practical approach of threat modeling is analyzing where the most effort should be placed in keeping a system secure. Most software designs are developed for business use, and it is essential to detect vulnerabilities during the testing stage to avoid extra costs and wastage of time. A software that is exposed to threats is due to permission to undertake basic operations without re-authentication and lack of input validation. Also, disclosure of sensitive information causes risks during error responses.

In performing threat modeling, then the first step is to identify the security goals through analyzing requirements that business needs. Compliances and other security measures should be defined in developing business purposes. Also, it is crucial to identify the external dependencies and assets of the business. Unauthorized access to the system data tends to cause threats to the software. Therefore, system developers need to identify assets that need protection from attackers. It also leads to identifying external dependencies by considering how applications are accessed on the production environment.

In creating a secure system design, it is also essential to identify the trust zones and entry points. The data obtained should be analyzed to create information flow with defined boundaries. It helps to identify a significant method to handle errors, input data validation, and user authentication. Identifying vulnerabilities involves running an extensive search for attacks and monitoring the effects of the system. Input validations and weak passwords have to be evaluated by the end-user. Documenting a threat model facilitates team responsibilities, and system developers can create effective software designs in reducing security threats. Documenting guidelines and testers reduce vulnerabilities in the system and generate test cases within the trust zones. In achieving effective and secure software design, it is sufficient to use STRIDE and DREAD approaches, among other techniques.

Define the Security Architecture

Security architecture evaluates the critical operating systems, logical hardware and software security elements in the design, and analyzing secure computer systems. For any security personnel, it is essential to understand the fundamental issues. Security architecture aims at applying extensive and rigorous approaches for investigating a contemporary and future structure and behavior of firm security processes and other sub-units to align with the crucial objectives and strategic direction. The main goal of creating a security architecture in an organization is to enhance business strategies and IT security (Goel, 2016). It allows an enterprise to trace its functions through the underlying technologies.

In creating a secure software design, security architecture provides structure and cohesiveness while allowing the firm to enhance security alignment. Defined top-down strategies ensure that the implementations and models are traced to the goal of the firm and the essential principles. The primary purpose of setting a security architecture is to establish a standard language for information security throughout the company (Mitra, 2017). The series of a target, intermediate, and current reference architectures are applied to align the elements of change. The models analyze the entities and relationships that exist within a firm in undertaking a set of business functions. The purpose of the framework is to define an ontology and taxonomy to give detailed business data on how work is carried out and executed.

Security architecture outlines the risk exposures of the firm and whether the existing IT elements are fundamental to the value of the security. An organization can have a secure software design if it effectively analyzes the kind of risks they are likely to face and at which levels it would affect the organization. Defining security architecture helps evaluates this and modifies security protocols that enhance value for the company. Also, security architecture helps a firm to know if the existing security processes will help in achieving the goals and accomplishing what the organization intends to do in the long run. It should support the firm in creating sustainability and enhance security measures.

Implementing security architecture begins with documenting the firm's strategy and essential details of how the firm functions. The procedure then breaks down to the company's processes and discrete crucial competencies through stakeholders. The security architecture analyzes the organization's charts, cycles, suppliers of technology hardware and software, data classifications, and databases. It also considers intranet, extranet, networks, servers, local and wide area networks, and interfaces between applications. They are essential elements to consider in relating to organizations' goals and operations. For practical utilization of security architecture, it is important to have adequate positioning in the firm as the results are comprehensive business security processes. The company, however, should ensure that the design implemented allows the firm to have a continual movement from the current to the future states. In designing security architecture, it is essential to consider computing aspects like sensor networks and other service-oriented elements. Control identification and mobile application are fundamental for effective security enhancement strategies.

Performing Secure Interface Design

Interface design deals with the way procedures and technologies are presented to individuals who secure the organization's information and policies. Many vulnerabilities and security breaches occur due to weak passwords and other unencrypted files in the system. Programs have a variety of interfaces like command-line and graphical users, and most require authentication. All interfaces should be secured, files placed in secure locations, and security protocols should be precise. The security management interface requires that the configurations are retrieved and data analysis conducted in security service.

In secure software design, downstream is a direction away from maintainers of software that distributes the source code, and the upstream codes are sent towards the initial development aspect. Out-of-band management includes the context of management interfaces for networking. It allows a system developer to establish trust boundaries in enhancing management functions for application in network resources. It helps in promoting management connectivity despite the status of other in-band network elements (Goel, 2016). Out-of-band management uses a dedicated management channel for system maintenance and allows a network operator to manage and supervise servers through remote controls despite the machine being on or whether an operating system is functional.

Performing Architectural Risk Assessment

Architectural risk assessment refers to risk management processes that outline the flaws in software architecture and analyzes the risks to information security that results from the deficiencies. The process aims at identifying the issues caused by exposing data of the assets to the risk and are prioritized as per the effects on the business and necessary mitigations. Architectural risk management is divided into risk mitigation, analysis, and identification. When risks are analyzed, then it involves the impacts, mitigations risks, and vulnerabilities (Sood et al., 2017). The information on assets revolves around the information assets, and the resources must be protected. The asset of a firm determines how critical the data is and enhances the value of confidentiality and integrity. In creating a secure software design, it is essential to consider how crucial the assets need protection and risk analysis approaches. A product is a threat analysis parlance while targeting a secure software design.

Threats affect how information assets are protected and can include hackers and crackers. All threats are malicious and should be recognized to avoid them from affecting the software. Vulnerabilities also make the software prone to security issues and are fundamental problems to flaws of the design. In eliminating vulnerabilities in a system, then it is important to restructure the broken codes and enhance a significant redesign for the software. Input filtering routine easily removes the problem, and risk management is essential in dealing with the effects of the assets in unmitigated vulnerabilities (McManus, 2018). Architectural risk assessment gears towards evaluating system risks and can implement the iterative process where data analyzed is used in future risk analysis efforts.

Risk management aims at evaluating the business risks from software regularly and identifying the assets that is likely to be affected. Analyzing risk depends on the accurate measures of the software purpose and how it links to the business activities. However, the information assets that a software protects are always vital for a company and must be managed carefully. In analyzing if the software is secure, it is essential to consider the characteristics of the application, risk mitigation, threat analysis, determinants of the risk effects, and risk vulnerability assessment. Risks can be analyzed in an organization through log analysis, auditing, and testing. In creating a secure software design, the security metrics should be consistent, contains units of measure, use automated equipment's and give results in terms of numbers. Software design is expressed and documented while evaluating the business impacts that relate to violating the asset information.