Security Testing in Software Development Lify Cycle.

Security Testing ensures the confidentiality of the data. It can be started right from the requirement gathering phase of the Software Development Life Cycle. This can verify the fact that any intentional or unintentional actions are not able to stop or delay the system. The complexity of security testing is different in different phases. 

1. Requirement Gathering:In this phase, we need to determine the level of security that the system may require while we assess the requirements. The level of security can vary through government level, bank level, e-commerce level, simple information level confidentiality, etc. Another consideration is the effort that can be invested with respect to security testing.
2. Design Phase: Here, a detailed plan for Security testing needs to be created. This involves listing of the testing tools, manual approaches and the list of vulnerabilities that will be covered.

The different types of vulnerabilities can be defined as 

-      Data confidentiality

-      Authentication

-      Authorization

-      Integrity

-      Availability

-      Non-repudiation

The different types of techniques that can be applied are:

-      SQL Command Injection

-      Cross Site Scripting

-      Session Management and broken authentication

-      Insecure direct object references

-      Exposure of sensitive data

-      Security misconfiguration

-      Function level access control

-      Cross Site Request Forgery

-      Invalid redirects

-      Using vulnerable components.

- Development Phase: Here tools for static analysis can be used for security testing. This tool helps in identifying the security loop holes based on patterns and rules. Testing in this phase is the most recommended, as it involves unit level testing. Here, each code block is tested for potential bugs. These bugs if left unchecked, result in a bigger error at the later stages. Examples of such bugs 

-      Exception Handling

-      Ignored Return Values

-      Buffer Overruns

-      Complicated Functions

- Integration Phase: As the code blocks are integrated one by one to form the whole system, integration testing is performed. This is also known as black box testing. These tests are performed to eliminate security vulnerabilities before deployment. These uncovers errors that were missed out or were nonexistent in the unit level testing. It also detects configuration errors, potential security inconsistencies with third party applications and the overall system. 

- System Testing Phase: Here vulnerability scanners are used extensively. They have a predefined set of security rules, adhering to which they crawl through the entire application finally creating a comprehensive report on the system vulnerabilities. It clearly defines the cause, severity and the solution for each case.  However, the scanner should be used with a manual check as it may generate many false positives due to its pre-defined set of rules and no knowledge of the business logic.

- Deployment Phase: Here, PenetrationTesting is performed where a hacking attack is simulated on the system. This is performed to uncover all the remaining security threats. Performing penetration tests avoid network costs as well as regulatory requirements. 

- Support/Maintenance Phase: All the above testing were pre-production testing. After deployment, post production testing need to be performed. This can be done more efficiently by using a Software Security Assurance Program.

Conclusion:

Security Testing is not something which can/needs to be only performed in the production environment. It should be performed through every phase of the SDLC. As it covers all the security issues right from initiation, it also reduces the cost, time and effort for future fixings.