Cybercrime rates have increased manifolds, and cybercriminals are attacking online websites left and right. Recent data breaches have exposed millions of people’s data, including their social securities, date of births, credit card numbers, bank accounts and addresses.
Today, building secure websites is one of the major concerns for any CIO or CTO. Network administrators, IT managers, software architects, and web developers are responsible for building and maintaining secure websites. In this article, we will cover some basic tips that will help you secure your websites.
Data security is the most significant component that is essential to Web security. The vast majority of the information stored in databases is plain and accessible. While the majority of data is stored in plain text, sensitive data must be encrypted in the database. The cost of keeping encrypted data isn’t that high. In actual today, most modern versions of databases come with encryption built-in.
The most common types of information that needs to be secured include emails, user IDs and Social Security numbers, passwords, date of birth records, credit card details and password hint answers and personal health records.
Additionally, you can also use double encryption for the most sensitive information such as credit card details, Social Security, credit card information, and any other information you believe is important. Hashing is recommended for passwords as well as other data encryption that is sensitive.
This is a simple process that is an integral part of designing a database and application architecture that doesn’t require much overhead.
Securing a website using HTTPS is a must today.
SQL Injection is responsible for 62% of cyber-attacks and hacking. SQL Injection is a technique hackers use to exploit SQL queries and URLs used in web applications.
The use of embedded SQL queries within your code can create an easier route for hackers. If possible, use stored procedures or encrypted queries to make it more difficult for hackers. If you use SQL queries, in no conditions should SQL queries be a component of your presentation layer codes (HTML, ASP.NET, JavaScript or any other.). They should be transferred into the server-side code. If you’re creating a UI layer and the data transfer must be done using secure APIs.
Developers usually store database server credentials within the configuration file. However, the database server, all other server settings and connections must be encrypted. Avoid the practice of hardcoding server credentials. If you encode credentials into your code, make sure that they are encrypted and the public and private keys are safe in a protected location.
Database systems might also have an option to secure database connections. For instance, SQL Server and Azure SQL permit secure connections to databases.
Simple passwords are among the primary reasons hackers get access to systems. The complexity of passwords also referred to as the strength of passwords is a measure of the strength against hackers. Here are a few essential points that developers can apply to make complicated passwords.
Hashing is the best choice to secure and save passwords. Hashing makes it impossible for anyone to see the password. The only method to change the password is by resetting it with the aid of security questions or other suggestions. Don’t use plain passwords in an email.
Broken Authentication is the second leading factor that causes Web application security risk. By implementing suggested good practices for developers, they can reduce significant security risks for their applications. Applications that do not implement correct authentication and session variables can allow hackers to take over keys, passwords session tokens, keys as well as other credentials stored in the session. Cookies are another technique that can be used to attack the security of applications.
APIs are an open method of data exchange between applications. Developers should ensure that their APIs are safe and utilize SSL as well as other best practices. Connection credentials as well as other sensitive information must be securely encrypted.
Correct handling of errors and exceptions might not be able to fix the application’s security, but it can help in solving the issue that could be patched. Developers must adopt the practice of incorporating error and exception handling as part of their code methods.
Analytics and logs don’t fit into the security category, but they can aid in finding and fixing the security hole. Monitoring and logging processes like login locations, location, browsers and others can help identify suspect users on a website. Developers should be in the habit of using analytics, such as Google Analytics for public websites which keep track of nearly all the activities of the site’s users.
Once a website is developed and deployed, it is up to network administrators and IT managers to secure the website and keep it secure from attackers. Here are some of the key items to consider.
The Web Server is one of the most vital elements of the web infrastructure. Web servers are accountable for the hosting of a website and the code that it uses services, as well as all the required files.
Here’s a list of things that Web administrators of the server should do to ensure that Web, as well as Database servers, are safe.
Here is a list of tasks database administrators must do to secure database servers.
Keep your servers up to date with the current patches including OS patches, database upgrades, and other software upgrades.
Implement a proper mechanism to monitor server traffic and implement a fraud protection mechanism for suspected traffic.
Web applications must implement the recording of recommended logs and exceptions. Server administrators should work with application managers to monitor application logs and exceptions frequently.
Monitor server logs frequently and analyzes them with the team. Server logs provide details on the traffic, exceptions, and warnings.
These are some of the steps that you can take to secure your website against data breaches and hackers.
