About Me

Brian Contos
Senior Director & Customer Security Strategist Brian Contos, CISSP, is senior director of emerging ...

Tags

#McAfeeFOCUS, #MFETrivia, #SecChat, #SecurityLegos, 12 Scams of Christmas, 2012, 2012 Security Predictions, Acquisition, Advanced Persistent Threat, Android, android antivirus, Android Malware, Android security, android security app, anti-phishing, anti-theft, anti-virus, antivirus, APIs, App Alert, Apple, application blacklisting, application developers, application security, app protection, apps, app safety, ATM scams, attacks, authentication, automotive, Bad Apps, balanced scorecard, best practices, Big Data, big security data, BlackBerry, Blackhat, Black Hat, black hat hackers, botnet, Brazil, breach, Business IT, car hacking, certification, Change Control, China, CISO Executive Summit, Citrix, class action lawsuit, cloud, Cloud city, Cloud computing, Cloud Expo, cloud security, Cofer Black, collaboration, Compliance, Conficker, consolidation, Consumer, consumerization, consumerization of IT, Content Protection, counter identity theft, credit card fraud and protection, credit card skimming, critical infrastructure, CSP, cyber attack, Cybercrime, cyberespionage, Cyber Insurance, Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act of 2011, cyber security, cybersecurity, cyber security awareness, Cyber Security Mom, cyber threat, cyberthreats, data, database activity monitoring, database security, data breach, Datacenter, data center, data center security, Data Classification, data loss, Data Loss Prevention, Data Protection, Data Protection Act, Dave DeWalt, Dave Marcus, dedicated security appliances, Deep Command, Deep Defender, DeepSAFE, DefCon, DefCon Kids, Department of Commerce, device, Device Control, devices, dewalt, DLP, Dmitri Alperovitch, easter, Ecuador, Eelectric Vehicle, Email & Web Security, Email & Web Security, email security, embedded, embedded devices, Embedded Security, Emerging Markets, Emerging Market Security, EMM, encryption, Endpoint Protection, Endpoint Security, enterprise, enterprise mobility, enterprise resource planning, enterprise scurity, enterprise security, epayment, epo, ePO Deep Command, ePolicy Orchestrator, ERP, ESM, espionage, EV, exploit, exploits, facebook, Facial recongnition, Family Safety, FDCC, file sharing, Financial Security, firewall, FISMA, Fixed Function Devices, Focus, Focus11, FOCUS 2011, forrester, Foundstone, Friday Security Highlights, Garter, Gartner, Gartner Security and Risk Management Summit, George Kurtz, Global Cybersecurity, Global SecurityAlliance Partner Summit, global threat intelligence, google, government, GTI, Hackers, hacking, Hacking Exposed, Hacktivism, HB1140, Healthcare, Heuristics, HIPAA, host intrusion prevention, Host IPS, HV, Hybrid Vehicle, ICS, IDC, identify potential cyber-threats, identity protection, identity theft, IDF 2011, Incident Response, Information leak, Information Protection, Information Security, Information Warfare, Insider Threats, Integrity, Integrity Control, intel, intellectual property, Internet Explorer, internet security, Interop, IntruShield, In vehicle Infotainment, IP, iphone, IPS, IT, IT Security, japan earthquake safe donation, japan earthquake scams, kurtz, labs, laptops, Larry Ponemon, law, legal, legal risk, linkedin, live-tweeting, lizamoon, Lockheed Martin, mac, Mac OS X, malware, Malware research, managed security services, Management, Mariposa, mass sql injection, mastercard, Maturity Model, McAfee, McAfee Application Control, McAfee Cloud Security Platform, McAfee Data Loss Prevention, Mcafee DLP, McAfee Email Gateway 7.0, McAfee Enterprise Mobility Management, McAfee ePO, McAfee ePolicy Orchestrator, McAfee Firewall Enterprise, McAfee FOCUS, McAfee FOCUS 2011, McAfee Identity Protection, McAfee Labs, McAfee Mobile Security, McAfee MOVE AV, McAfee Network Security Platform, McAfee NSP, McAfee Policy Auditor, McAfee Risk Advisor, McAfee Security Journal, McAfee Security Management, McAfee Security Webinars, McAfee SiteAdvisor, McAfee Vulnerability Manager, McAfee Vulnerability Manager for Databases, mcafee wavesecure, Microsoft, Microsoft Security Bulletin, Mid-Market, Mobile, mobile antivirus, mobile app, mobile data communications, mobile device, mobile devices, mobile devices and security threats, mobile malware, mobile phone spyware, mobile security, mobile security app, mobile smartphone security, mobiles security, mom, MS12-020, MySQL, NACACS, near field communication, Network Perimeter Security, Network Security, Network Security; Email & Web Security; Security-as-a-Service, network security server security, new year resolution, next-gen IPS, Next Generation IPS, NFC, Night Dragon, NIST, NitroSecurity, NitroView, OMB, online banking, Open Source, operational risk, Operation Aurora, Optimized, outages, OWASP, passwords, password security, patch, Patch Tuesday, Patmos, PCI, PCI Compliance, PCI DSS, Peer to Peer file sharing, perception, personal information over mobile phones, phishing, PII, Ponemon Institute, PostScript, Potentially unwanted program, power grid, power loss, Pre-detection, Pre-Installed Malware, Printers, privacy, protection, Public-Private partnerships, Public Sector, pup, QR codes, reference architecture, regulations, reporting, reputational risk, retail, risk, Risk Advisor, Risk and Compliance, Risk Management, ROI, Rookits, Rootkits, RSA, RSA 2012, SaaS, SaaS security solutions, safe searching, Saviynt Access Manager, SCADA, scam, SCAP, SEC Guidance, SecTor, secure cloud computing, secure container, security, Security-as-a-Service, Security and Defense Agenda, security attacks, security awareness, security breach, security conferences, Security Connected, Security Connected Reference Architecture, Security Influence, security information and event management, security management, security metrics, security optimization, security policy, security threats, Sentrigo acquisition, Shady RAT, SharePoint, shortened URLs, SIA Partners, SIEM, SiteAdvisor, Situational Awareness, Small Business, smartphones, smartphone security, SMB, social business, social media, social networking, social networks, Software-as-a-Service, spam, Spearphishing, sql attacks, SQL Injection, State of Security, stealth attack, stealth crimeware, stealth detection, Steve Jobs, storage, Stuxnet, Support, Symbian, T-Mobile, Tablet, tablets, tablet security, targeted attacks, TCO, technology development, Telecommunications, threat reduction, TJX, TPM, Trusted Computing Module, trustedsource, twitter, Twitter online security, U.S. Cyber Challenge Camps, urchin.js, Vericept DLP, ViaForensics, Virtualization, VIrtual Machines, visa, Vontu DLP, vPro, vulnerability, Vulnerability Manager, vulnerability manager for databases, Web 2.0, Webinar, web protection, web security, Websense DSS, Web services, white hat hackers, Whitelisting, wikileaks, Windows 7, Windows Mobile, Wind River, Xerox, youtube, Zero-Day, zeus

Enterprise : Security Connected :

#SecChat Wrap-Up: Application Security

Wednesday, March 30, 2011 at 1:13pm by Brian Contos

Last Thursday, we hosted our monthly Twitter #SecChat on Application Security. We did things a little differently this time and instead of having McAfee folks choose a trending topic, we chose the topic based on feedback from 451 Analyst Josh Corman – a frequent #SecChat participant and security expert.

A topic near and dear to his heart, @JoshCorman was an active participant along with many others as we discussed the current state of application security and the related issues. The conversation began with @labnuke’s comment, “Application developers don’t know the power of the platforms they develop on” which spurred comments around the education and nature of being an application developer. @DaveMarcus chimed in to suggest that application developers are not incentivized to develop secure apps but just apps in volume – especially since time-to-market will always trump secure development and good QA. @danielkennedy74 suggested that less programming skills required to build an app could be a good thing so long as the built in functions are written properly. He also mentions that having use cases for application developers are hard enough but to add in abuse cases and you have a very difficult requirement for developers. However, most participants agreed in the importance of constant testing of apps and further education for application developers. Perhaps even a Manga Guide to secure app development, as suggested by @451Wendy.

The conversation also touched on topics of legacy code versus building new code. @JoshCorman brought up the idea that it is hard to go back and retrofit legacy code when the developer team is focused forward. In which he made the case that it is easier to build more rugged software on new code rather than to retrofit old code. @DanielKennedy74 pointed out that if anyone wants to drag their legacy app into the interconnected Internet age, they would need to be prepared to fix it. On the other hand, @DaveMarcus said it best – “the attack only needs to be as sophisticated as the target requires – i.e. SQLi = kids stuff”.

While the chat touched on the problems of app security, @Joshcorman asked where people are having the most success in driving better app security. @SecurityNinja suggested to speak to developers in their language and give them processes, tools and ideas that actually help them. Whereas @coverity thought that strong contract terms need to be industry standards to make third parties accountable for code and quality security. Finally, it was widely agreed that the key might be in teaching the importance of application security outside the immediate security community as we keep talking amongst ourselves.

What are you thoughts on application security? What are the ways in which you’ve been most successful in driving better application security? Leave your comments below!

If you missed the chat this month, be sure to join us next month as we tackle the next topic. As always, we’re open to hearing from you so tweet @McAfeeBusiness if you have a topic suggestion.

Tags: application developers, application security, enterprise

About Me

Enterprise Blogs

Feeds & Podcasts

Meet the Bloggers

Archive

Tags

#SecChat Wrap-Up: Application Security

Submit your own comments / message for this post

Comments (0)