10. Measure
Define key metrics that are meaningful and relevant to your organization. Well-defined metrics will help you assess your security posture over time.9. Monitor user activity
Trust, but verify. Monitoring user activities helps you ensure that users are following software security best practices. It also allows you to detect suspicious activities, such as privilege abuse and user impersonation.8. Integrate security into your SDLC
Integrate software security activities into your organization’s software development life cycle (SDLC) from start to finish. Those activities should include architecture risk analysis, static, dynamic, and interactive application security testing, SCA, and pen testing. Building security into your SDLC does require time and effort at first. But fixing vulnerabilities early in the SDLC is vastly cheaper and much faster than waiting until the end.7. Segment your network
Segment your network is an application of the principle of least privilege. Proper network segmentation limits the movement of attackers. Identify where your critical data is stored, and use appropriate security controls to limit the traffic to and from those network segments.6. Document your security policies
Maintain a knowledge repository that includes comprehensively documented software security policies. Security policies allow your employees, including network administrators, security staff, and so on, to understand what activities you’re performing and why.5. Create a robust IR plan
No matter how much you adhere to software security best practices, you’ll always face the possibility of a breach. But if you prepare, you can stop attackers from achieving their mission even if they do breach your systems.4. Enforce least privilege
Ensure that users and systems have the minimum access privileges required to perform their job functions. Enforcing the principle of least privilege significantly reduces your attack surface by eliminating unnecessary access rights, which can cause a variety of compromises.That includes avoiding “privilege creep,” which happens when administrators don’t revoke access to systems or resources an employee no longer needs. Privilege creep can occur when an employee moves to a new role, adopts new processes, leaves the organization, or should have received only temporary or lower-level access in the first place.
3. Automate routine tasks
Attackers use automation to detect open ports, security misconfigurations, and so on. So you can’t defend your systems using only manual techniques. Instead, automate day-to-day security tasks, such as analyzing firewall changes and device security configurations. Automating frequent tasks allows your security staff to focus on more strategic security initiatives.You can also automate much of your software testing if you have the right tools. That includes, as noted in No. 1, maintaining a software BOM to help you update open source software components and comply with their licenses. With an SCA tool, you can automate a task that you simply can’t do manually.
2. Educate and train users
Employee training should be a part of your organization’s security DNA. Having a well-organized and well-maintained security training curriculum for your employees will go a long way in protecting your data and assets. Include awareness training for all employees and secure coding training for developers. Do it regularly, not just once a year. And conduct simulations like phishing tests to help employees spot and shut down social engineering attacks.1. Patch your software and systems
Many attackers exploit known vulnerabilities associated with old or out-of-date software. To thwart common attacks, ensure that all your systems have up-to-date patches. Regular patching is one of the most effective software security practices.Of course, you can’t keep your software up to date if you don’t know what you’re using. Today, an average of 70%—and often more than 90%—of the software components in applications are open source. You need to maintain an inventory, or a software bill of materials (BOM), of those components. A BOM helps you make sure you are meeting the licensing obligations of those components and staying on top of patches.
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