Writing Secure Code

Keep black-hat hackers at bay with the tips and techniques in this entertaining, eye-opening book! Developers will learn how to padlock their applications throughout the entire development process—from designing secure applications to writing robust code that can withstand repeated attacks to testing applications for security flaws. Easily digested chapters reveal proven principles, strategies, and coding techniques. The authors—two battle-scarred veterans who have solved some of the industry’s toughest security problems—provide sample code in several languages. This edition includes updated information about threat modeling, designing a security process, international issues, file-system issues, adding privacy to applications, and performing security code reviews. It also includes enhanced coverage of buffer overruns, Microsoft .NET security, and Microsoft ActiveX development, plus practical checklists for developers, testers, and program managers.

Covers topics such as the importance of secure systems, threat modeling, canonical representation issues, solving database input, denial-of-service attacks, and security code reviews and checklists.

"The security of information systems has not improved at a rate consistent with the growth and sophistication of the attacks being made against them. To address this problem, we must improve the underlying strategies and techniques used to create our systems. Specifically, we must build security in from the start, rather than append it as an afterthought. That's the point of Secure Coding in C and C++. In careful detail, this book shows software developers how to build high-quality systems that are less vulnerable to costly and even catastrophic attack. It's a book that every developer should read before the start of any serious project." --Frank Abagnale, author, lecturer, and leading consultant on fraud prevention and secure documents Learn the Root Causes of Software Vulnerabilities and How to Avoid Them Commonly exploited software vulnerabilities are usually caused by avoidable software defects. Having analyzed nearly 18,000 vulnerability reports over the past ten years, the CERT/Coordination Center (CERT/CC) has determined that a relatively small number of root causes account for most of them. This book identifies and explains these causes and shows the steps that can be taken to prevent exploitation. Moreover, this book encourages programmers to adopt security best practices and develop a security mindset that can help protect software from tomorrow's attacks, not just today's. Drawing on the CERT/CC's reports and conclusions, Robert Seacord systematically identifies the program errors most likely to lead to security breaches, shows how they can be exploited, reviews the potential consequences, and presents secure alternatives. Coverage includes technical detail on how to Improve the overall security of any C/C++ application Thwart buffer overflows and stack-smashing attacks that exploit insecure string manipulation logic Avoid vulnerabilities and security flaws resulting from the incorrect use of dynamic memory management functions Eliminate integer-related problems: integer overflows, sign errors, and truncation errors Correctly use formatted output functions without introducing format-string vulnerabilities Avoid I/O vulnerabilities, including race conditions Secure Coding in C and C++ presents hundreds of examples of secure code, insecure code, and exploits, implemented for Windows and Linux. If you're responsible for creating secure C or C++ software--or for keeping it safe--no other book offers you this much detailed, expert assistance.

The authors look at the problem of bad code in a new way. Packed with advice based on the authors' decades of experience in the computer security field, this concise and highly readable book explains why so much code today is filled with vulnerabilities, and tells readers what they must do to avoid writing code that can be exploited by attackers. Writing secure code isn't easy, and there are no quick fixes to bad code. To build code that repels attack, readers need to be vigilant through each stage of the entire code lifecycle: Architecture, Design, Implementation, Testing and Operations. Beyond the technical, Secure Coding sheds new light on the economic, psychological, and sheer practical reasons why security vulnerabilities are so ubiquitous today. It presents a new way of thinking about these vulnerabilities and ways that developers can compensate for the factors that have produced such unsecured software in the past.

Hacking the Code has over 400 pages of dedicated exploit, vulnerability, and tool code with corresponding instruction. Unlike other security and programming books that dedicate hundreds of pages to architecture and theory based flaws and exploits, Hacking the Code dives right into deep code analysis. Previously undisclosed security research in combination with superior programming techniques from Foundstone and other respected organizations is included in both the Local and Remote Code sections of the book. The book is accompanied with a FREE COMPANION CD containing both commented and uncommented versions of the source code examples presented throughout the book. In addition to the book source code, the CD also contains a copy of the author-developed Hacker Code Library v1.0. The Hacker Code Library includes multiple attack classes and functions that can be utilized to quickly create security programs and scripts. These classes and functions simplify exploit and vulnerability tool development to an extent never before possible with publicly available software. Learn to quickly create security tools that ease the burden of software testing and network administration Find out about key security issues regarding vulnerabilities, exploits, programming flaws, and secure code development Discover the differences in numerous types of web-based attacks so that developers can create proper quality assurance testing procedures and tools Learn to automate quality assurance, management, and development tasks and procedures for testing systems and applications Learn to write complex Snort rules based solely upon traffic generated by network tools and exploits

Architect and design highly scalable, robust, clean, and highly performant applications in Python About This Book Identify design issues and make the necessary adjustments to achieve improved performance Understand practical architectural quality attributes from the perspective of a practicing engineer and architect using Python Gain knowledge of architectural principles and how they can be used to provide accountability and rationale for architectural decisions Who This Book Is For This book is for experienced Python developers who are aspiring to become the architects of enterprise-grade applications or software architects who would like to leverage Python to create effective blueprints of applications. What You Will Learn Build programs with the right architectural attributes Use Enterprise Architectural Patterns to solve scalable problems on the Web Understand design patterns from a Python perspective Optimize the performance testing tools in Python Deploy code in remote environments or on the Cloud using Python Secure architecture applications in Python In Detail This book starts off by explaining how Python fits into an application architecture. As you move along, you will understand the architecturally significant demands and how to determine them. Later, you'll get a complete understanding of the different architectural quality requirements that help an architect to build a product that satisfies business needs, such as maintainability/reusability, testability, scalability, performance, usability, and security. You will use various techniques such as incorporating DevOps, Continuous Integration, and more to make your application robust. You will understand when and when not to use object orientation in your applications. You will be able to think of the future and design applications that can scale proportionally to the growing business. The focus is on building the business logic based on the business process documentation and which frameworks are to be used when. We also cover some important patterns that are to be taken into account while solving design problems as well as those in relatively new domains such as the Cloud. This book will help you understand the ins and outs of Python so that you can make those critical design decisions that not just live up to but also surpass the expectations of your clients. Style and approach Filled with examples and use cases, this guide takes a no-nonsense approach to help you with everything it takes to become a successful software architect.

Password sniffing, spoofing, buffer overflows, and denial of service: these are only a few of the attacks on today's computer systems and networks. At the root of this epidemic is poorly written, poorly tested, and insecure code that puts everyone at risk. Clearly, today's developers need help figuring out how to write code that attackers won't be able to exploit. But writing such code is surprisingly difficult. Secure Programming Cookbook for C and C++ is an important new resource for developers serious about writing secure code. It contains a wealth of solutions to problems faced by those who care about the security of their applications. It covers a wide range of topics, including safe initialization, access control, input validation, symmetric and public key cryptography, cryptographic hashes and MACs, authentication and key exchange, PKI, random numbers, and anti-tampering. The rich set of code samples provided in the book's more than 200 recipes will help programmers secure the C and C++ programs they write for both Unix® (including Linux®) and Windows® environments. Readers will learn: How to avoid common programming errors, such as buffer overflows, race conditions, and format string problems How to properly SSL-enable applications How to create secure channels for client-server communication without SSL How to integrate Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) into applications Best practices for using cryptography properly Techniques and strategies for properly validating input to programs How to launch programs securely How to use file access mechanisms properly Techniques for protecting applications from reverse engineering The book's web site supplements the book by providing a place to post new recipes, including those written in additional languages like Perl, Java, and Python. Monthly prizes will reward the best recipes submitted by readers. Secure Programming Cookbook for C and C++ is destined to become an essential part of any developer's library, a code companion developers will turn to again and again as they seek to protect their systems from attackers and reduce the risks they face in today's dangerous world.

Most organizations have a firewall, antivirus software, and intrusion detection systems, all of which are intended to keep attackers out. So why is computer security a bigger problem today than ever before? The answer is simple--bad software lies at the heart of all computer security problems. Traditional solutions simply treat the symptoms, not the problem, and usually do so in a reactive way. This book teaches you how to take a proactive approach to computer security. Building Secure Software cuts to the heart of computer security to help you get security right the first time. If you are serious about computer security, you need to read this book, which includes essential lessons for both security professionals who have come to realize that software is the problem, and software developers who intend to make their code behave. Written for anyone involved in software development and use—from managers to coders—this book is your first step toward building more secure software. Building Secure Software provides expert perspectives and techniques to help you ensure the security of essential software. If you consider threats and vulnerabilities early in the devel-opment cycle you can build security into your system. With this book you will learn how to determine an acceptable level of risk, develop security tests, and plug security holes before software is even shipped. Inside you'll find the ten guiding principles for software security, as well as detailed coverage of: Software risk management for security Selecting technologies to make your code more secure Security implications of open source and proprietary software How to audit software The dreaded buffer overflow Access control and password authentication Random number generation Applying cryptography Trust management and input Client-side security Dealing with firewalls Only by building secure software can you defend yourself against security breaches and gain the confidence that comes with knowing you won't have to play the "penetrate and patch" game anymore. Get it right the first time. Let these expert authors show you how to properly design your system; save time, money, and credibility; and preserve your customers' trust.