Software Development Security Requirements

  • Identification and description of security requirements relevant to software development.
  • How these requirements are incorporated into the software development lifecycle (e.g., during planning, design, implementation, and testing).

Ensuring the security of the Integrated Management System (IMS) throughout the software development lifecycle (SDLC) is paramount to protecting the sensitive data it handles and maintaining the trust of our clients. The following outlines the key security requirements and best practices integrated into each phase of our SDLC to mitigate risks and ensure the development of a secure and robust application.

Requirement analysis and specification

  • Security requirements gathering: During the initial phase, security requirements are gathered alongside functional requirements. This involves understanding the regulatory and compliance needs such as ISO 27001, GDPR, and industry-specific standards.
  • Risk assessment: Conducting, as needed, a thorough risk assessment to identify potential security threats and vulnerabilities. This includes analyzing the sensitivity of data processed by the system and defining appropriate security controls.

System design

  • Secure architecture design: Ensuring the system architecture incorporates security principles such as least privilege, defense in depth, and secure data flow. Architectural diagrams and threat models are created to visualize and mitigate potential attack vectors.
  • Data Protection: Designing data protection mechanisms including data encryption (both in transit and at rest), data masking, and secure key management. Ensuring compliance with data protection regulations.

Development

  • Secure coding practices: Adopting secure coding standards and guidelines to prevent common vulnerabilities such as SQL injection, Cross-Site Scripting (XSS), Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF), and other OWASP Top 10 vulnerabilities.
  • Code reviews and pair programming: Conducting regular code reviews and utilizing pair programming to ensure adherence to secure coding practices and to identify potential security flaws early in the development process.
  • Use of security sibraries and frameworks: Leveraging well-established security libraries and frameworks to implement security controls such as authentication, authorization, and input validation.

Testing

  • Static and dynamic analysis: Integrating automated static and dynamic analysis tools into the CI/CD pipeline to detect security vulnerabilities in the codebase. Static analysis checks the code without executing it, while dynamic analysis involves running the application to identify runtime issues.
  • Penetration testing: Conducting regular penetration tests by internal teams and external security experts to simulate real-world attacks and uncover vulnerabilities that may not be identified through automated tools.
  • Security testing: Incorporating security testing into the overall testing strategy, including unit tests, integration tests, and user acceptance tests focused on security requirements.

Deployment

  • Secure deployment practices: Ensuring secure deployment practices by using automated scripts and tools that enforce security configurations, minimize human error, and maintain consistency across environments.
  • Environment hardening: Hardening the deployment environments (development, testing, production) by disabling unnecessary services, applying security patches promptly, and implementing network security measures such as firewalls and intrusion detection systems.

Maintenance and monitoring

  • Continuous monitoring: Implementing continuous monitoring to detect and respond to security incidents. This includes logging and monitoring access and activity logs, and utilizing security information and event management (SIEM) tools.
  • Vulnerability management: Regularly updating and patching software components and dependencies to address newly discovered vulnerabilities. Maintaining an up-to-date inventory of all software components and their security status.

Documentation and training

  • Security documentation: Maintaining comprehensive security documentation that includes secure coding guidelines, incident response plans, and procedures for managing vulnerabilities.
  • Developer training: Providing ongoing security training for developers to stay current with emerging threats, secure coding techniques, and best practices. Encouraging participation in security communities and continuous learning.