Safety First: 9 Solid Tips for Best Web Development Security

When businesses implement well-designed web development security, their websites protect user data, prevent unauthorized access, and mitigate cyberattacks. An experienced Las Vegas web development agency builds sites with safety in mind. They use the following seven security strategies:

1. Start with security threat audits
2. Strengthen configuration
3. Integrate data encryption methods
4. Update all dependencies
5. Create a backup and data recovery plan
6. Train employees and managers
7. Manage permissions

Neglecting web security leaves the website vulnerable to data breaches, downtime, and reputational damage. Ready to find out more about how to prevent them? Let’s go!

To learn how Digital Authority Partners can create a standout website for you, watch this video!

Start With a Security Threat Audit

A security threat audit evaluates and identifies a website's potential vulnerabilities, risks, and threats. It involves reviewing the site infrastructure, applications, configurations, and policies to assess overall site security. Audits are also part of technical search engine optimization (SEO). The process of conducting a security threat audit involves the following steps:

• Define the scope and goals of the security threat audit, identifying the assets, systems, and processes to assess.
• Gather relevant information about the system or network, such as diagrams, system configurations, policies, and procedures.
• Perform a comprehensive assessment of potential vulnerabilities using automated tools, such as vulnerability scanners. Web developers may use manual testing techniques to identify issues that automated tools may miss.
• Analyze the identified vulnerabilities and assess their potential effect on the system's security.
• Identify and analyze potential threats.
• Evaluate existing security controls and measures such as access controls, authentication mechanisms, encryption methods, etc.
• Document the findings of the security threat audit in a comprehensive report.

Strengthen Site Configuration

Improving site configuration involves optimizing site settings to enhance security and mitigate the risk of potential attacks. This encompasses implementing best practices, strengthening security settings, and appropriately setting up diverse site components. The following fundamentals contribute to the overall enhancement of site configuration:

• Ensure server hosting is configured correctly with secure settings, including appropriate access controls, enabling secure protocols (such as HTTPS), disabling unnecessary services and ports, and applying security patches to the server software.
• Update Content Management Systems (CMS) such as WordPress, Drupal, or Joomla with the latest version and patches. Remove unnecessary plugins, themes, or extensions.
• Set proper file and directory permissions on the web server so only authorized users have the necessary access rights.
• Apply more robust database security with solid database credentials, restricting access to authorized users, and applying security patches and updates.
• Implement secure user authentication mechanisms, such as strong password policies, multi-factor authentication (MFA), and account lockout mechanisms.
• Configure appropriate error handling to prevent the exposure of sensitive information in error messages.
• Utilize secure communication protocols, such as SSL/TLS, to encrypt data transmitted between the website and users.

Integrate Data Encryption Methods

Data encryption is about converting plain, readable data into an encoded form with the help of cryptographic algorithms. It ensures sensitive information remains secure and protected from unauthorized access and threats.

Encryption makes the data unintelligible to those who do not possess the appropriate decryption key. Optimizing data security is part of every technical SEO strategy; you can do it with these techniques:

• Select a secure encryption algorithm from established cryptographic standards, such as AES (Advanced Encryption Standard), RSA (Rivest-Shamir-Adleman), or DES (Data Encryption Standard).
• Generate keys to encrypt and decrypt data.
• Apply the selected algorithm and key to the data.
• Store or transmit encrypted data using secure channels or storage systems.
• Decrypt the data using the appropriate decryption key.

Data encryption happens at different levels according to the specific requirements and use cases:

• Disk Encryption is applied to entire disk drives or partitions to safeguard data even if the physical storage media is compromised.
• File or Folder Encryption is for individual files or folders; it provides control over which data is encrypted, especially files containing particularly sensitive information.
• Database Encryption is applied to databases, protecting sensitive information such as personal data, financial records, or proprietary data.
• Communication Encryption is applied to data during transmission over networks or communication channels using SSL/TLS.

Update All Dependencies

Updating dependencies refers to keeping the software libraries, frameworks, plugins, or other third-party components used in a website updated. Dependencies are external code resources that websites rely on to function correctly.

Developers update site dependencies to address vulnerabilities and fix bugs that could exist in older versions. Updating dependencies involves these steps:

• List all external dependencies, including libraries, frameworks, content management systems (CMS), plugins, or other components.
• Stay informed about security advisories and updates for these dependencies by subscribing to security mailing lists, relevant online communities, or forums.
• Assess the impact of the update on the website. Some updates may lead to compatibility issues or require modifications to the codebase.
• Plan a schedule to update dependencies regularly. Prioritize critical security updates and vulnerabilities.
• Create a testing environment to verify the impact of the updates on the website.
• Implement updates in a staging environment before deploying to the production environment.
• Back up your website, including the codebase, databases, and associated files.
• Monitor the website for unexpected issues, such as compatibility problems or decreased performance.

Create a Backup and Data Recovery Plan

Having a data backup and recovery plan protects the website's valuable data. This ensures business continuity during data loss, hardware failure, or other incidents. The first step in backup and data recovery is determining what data is critical to business operations.

Critical data may include customer records, financial data, intellectual property, system configurations, and other essential files or databases. After this step, developers proceed with the following:

• Determine how frequently to perform backups based on the data's criticality and the frequency of changes. Remember, critical data needs more frequent backups.
• Select the appropriate backup method based on the requirements. It could be a complete, incremental, differential, or continuous backup. You may choose a combination of these methods.
• Decide where to store backups. It can be on-premises, external hard drives, network-attached storage (NAS), or tape drives. It can also be a cloud storage solution.
• Create a schedule that outlines how and when to back up.
• Consider off-site backup and disaster recovery solutions which involve storing backups in a geographically separate location.
• Periodically review backup and recovery plan to ensure it remains aligned with the evolving business needs, system changes, and data growth.
• Determine how long to retain backups based on legal and compliance requirements and business needs.

Train Employees and Managers

Training managers and employees about web security creates a security-conscious culture within an organization or company. It involves identifying specific web security knowledge and skill gaps among managers and employees.

Developers initially conduct a comprehensive assessment to determine employees’ existing understanding of web security concepts, practices, and potential risks they may face. After an evaluation, they use these strategies:

• Create well-structured and engaging training materials covering essential web security topics.
• Establish web security policies, guidelines, and procedures for managers and employees.
• Provide interactive training sessions, workshops, or seminars to educate managers and employees about web security.
• Incorporate real-life examples and case studies to show the potential consequences of security breaches and the importance of web security practices.
• Conduct simulated phishing attacks to raise awareness about the dangers of phishing emails. Describe ways to identify and respond to attacks.
• Encourage reporting and incident response. Establish clear channels for reporting.

Manage Permissions

Managing permissions determines who has access to specific resources and functionalities on a website or application. Developers collaborate with managers and start by identifying the access requirements for different roles or user groups within the website or web application.

They determine what resources, functionalities, and data each role should have. Afterward, they use these permission management techniques:

• Implement a role-based access control system that assigns permissions based on predefined roles rather than individual users.
• Apply the principle of least privilege, granting users the minimum necessary permissions to perform their tasks.
• Conduct periodic reviews of permissions to ensure accuracy and appropriateness.
• Secure robust authentication and authorization mechanisms to verify user identity and grant appropriate permissions.
• Implement granular permission settings to allow control over access to specific resources or actions. Consider attribute-based access control (ABAC) or access control lists (ACLs) for more detailed and specific permissions.
• Assign secure user management practices to handle user accounts, including account creation, password management, and account deletion.
• Regularly monitor and audit permissions to detect unauthorized changes or potential security risks.

Summing Up

You can guarantee web development security by following these effective strategies. A secure website is possible with a trusted and experienced Las Vegas web development agency. Find out how website security can improve your business. Call Digital Authority Partners and schedule a consultation.