OWASP Sets the Standard for Safe Software Across Industries

Tags:

02 Jul 2024

Enhancing Software Security through Education, Community Building, and Collaboration

As businesses transition their products, services, and sales to online platforms, their reliance on custom websites and mobile applications is growing at an unprecedented rate. In many instances, the primary mode of interaction with certain businesses is through a mobile application or a website. The security and reliability of these platforms are paramount for ensuring smooth and secure customer interactions.

In 2001, Mark Curphey founded The Open Web Application Security Project (OWASP) with the objective of establishing a non-profit foundation dedicated to enhancing software security through education, community building, and collaboration. It offers free resources to all those involved in the development of or testing of secure software. By 2024, OWASP has become the benchmark for secure software development, and testing, with nearly every Fortune 500 company either utilizing its knowledge or actively contributing to it.

Since its inception, with a focus on website software security, OWASP has expanded to improve software security across various domains, including mobile applications, medical, industrial, and now artificial intelligence. Each domain poses unique challenges and OWASP’s expansive project catalog offers tailored solutions that cater to these specific needs. For instance, the OWASP Mobile Security Project provides tools and techniques to secure mobile device software effectively. With more than 1000 projects in development, OWASP has a dedicated project that can assist you with software security, regardless of your development needs.

OWASP offers a plethora of resources that are invaluable to software development and security professionals:

OWASP Cheat Sheet Series: A collection of concise, high value tips for application security.
OWASP Testing Guide: A comprehensive manual to help developers and testers identify and mitigate security flaws.
OWASP Code Review Guide: Guidelines for performing secure code reviews to catch vulnerabilities early in the development cycle.
OWASP DevSecOps Guidelines: Integrating security into DevOps to ensure the development of secure and reliable software throughout the software lifecycle.

Community and collaboration are at the heart of OWASP's effectiveness. It operates as a vibrant community of developers, security experts, and technology enthusiasts worldwide who share their knowledge and learn from each other. Engaging with this community can provide invaluable insights and continuous learning opportunities.

For product engineers, quality managers, cybersecurity managers, and all stakeholders in the software development process, utilizing OWASP’s resources can dramatically enhance your project's security posture. From training and education to tools and community support, OWASP equips you with everything you need to embed security into the DNA of your software projects.

By integrating OWASP’s principles and resources into your development practices, you ensure not just the security but also the reliability and trustworthiness of your software—qualities that are paramount in today’s digital-first business environment.

The Intertek software security and testing teams have been incorporating the OWASP security methodology into our practices since 2005. We are continually striving to enhance our security methodologies, and staying updated with the latest OWASP methods is a significant part of this process.

Joe Dawson

Principal Software Security Analyst, Intertek Connected World

With more than 30 years of cybersecurity experience, Joe provides his invaluable insights by sitting on a variety of standards technical panels including the IEC 62443 and UL 2900 series of standards. He helps customers develop a cybersecurity pathway for their IoT devices, including regulatory, testing, and certification requirements for global markets.