What are the most common secure coding practices to avoid when training employees?

1 Why avoid secure coding practices?

Although it may seem like teaching your employees more secure coding practices is a good idea, this is not always the case. Some secure coding practices may be outdated, ineffective, or even counterproductive and could increase your risk of security issues. For example, some secure coding practices may be based on obsolete technologies or frameworks, incompatible with your current development environment, too complex to follow correctly, irrelevant for your application domain, overkill for your security requirements, or misleading and create a false sense of security. Therefore, it is important to avoid teaching employees secure coding practices that are not aligned with your current security needs, standards, or expectations. Instead, focus on the secure coding practices that are most relevant, effective, and applicable to your situation.

2 How to identify secure coding practices to avoid?

To avoid teaching employees secure coding practices that are not suitable for your context, you should start by conducting a security assessment of your current software development lifecycle (SDLC). This will help you identify the security risks, gaps, and challenges you face. Additionally, review your existing security policies, guidelines, and procedures to evaluate their effectiveness, compliance, and alignment with your security objectives and best practices. Research and benchmark the latest security trends, technologies, and standards in your industry, domain, and application type to compare them with your current security practices. To gain further insight, consult with security experts, auditors, or consultants to get their feedback and recommendations on your security practices. Finally, collect and analyze data and metrics on your security performance, incidents, and feedback to identify the root causes and areas for improvement. By taking these steps you will be able to determine which secure coding practices should be avoided when teaching employees.

3 How to update your secure coding practices?

To ensure your employees are practicing secure coding that is suitable for your context, you should prioritize the most critical and impactful security issues and practices that need to be addressed. Additionally, define clear and measurable security goals, objectives, and indicators to monitor progress. Implement the latest security technologies, frameworks, and tools that are compatible with your development environment and processes. Follow the latest security standards, guidelines, and best practices relevant to your industry, domain, and application type. Finally, test and validate your security practices and outcomes to make sure they meet your security requirements. By taking these steps, you will be able to update your secure coding practices in alignment with your current security needs.

4 How to teach your secure coding practices?

To avoid teaching your employees secure coding practices that are not suitable for your context, you should design and deliver a comprehensive and tailored security awareness and training program that covers your updated security practices and objectives. Utilize a variety of methods and formats to deliver your security training, such as online courses, webinars, workshops, quizzes, games, simulations, or case studies. Additionally, engage and motivate your employees to participate in the training by providing incentives, recognition, feedback, or rewards. Assess and evaluate your employees' security knowledge, skills, and behavior, and provide them with guidance, support, or coaching. To reinforce and sustain your security culture and education, offer regular updates, reminders, or refresher courses. By doing these steps, you will be able to teach your employees secure coding practices that are suitable for your context and help them develop secure software.

5 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?