It is essential to prioritize security features when developing an app, especially as data privacy and security concerns continue to grow. Nowadays, there's an app for everything—from grocery shopping to ghost speech translation—the app industry is booming.

So, what security features should application security engineers include, and why are they so important? In this blog, we'll explore these questions and learn from the practices of others in the industry. Read on!

What are Security Features for Apps?

App security features minimize the risk of vulnerabilities and security threats. These features ensure the application's availability, stability, integrity, and confidentiality.

Examples of security features include two-factor authentication, secure sessions, regular patching, and strict error handling. These measures protect against potential threats, maintain the software's reliability, and safeguard sensitive data.

The Need For App Security Features

People worldwide spend about 5 hours and 7 minutes daily using an app. This could lead to several issues. However, implementing robust app security features can address these concerns in the following key ways:

1. Preventing Breaches, Attacks, and Protecting User Data

In 2023, the Moovit app breach became controversial. Hackers leaked the personal information of about 65 million users. Hackers used this data to create multiple ransomware attacks, hitting at least three U.S. government agencies. Security features like authorization could prevent such unauthorized access.

2. Regulatory Compliance

Data protection authorities like the California Attorney General (CAG) and the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) have scrutinized several apps for multiple reasons. Legal damages, loss of reputation, and loss of the user base result from the lack of security features in an app.

3. Business Continuity and Reputation

Authorities have fined multiple apps, including some big names in the social media space like X, Meta, etc., and news outlets have featured them for violating the privacy and security of their users.

Various countries banned TikTok for similar reasons. Not implementing security features in apps can lead to a loss of reputation and, consequently, a drop in users, affecting business continuity.

Security features also protect apps from other issues like insider threats, server-side attacks, data exchange issues, insecure data storage, communication vulnerabilities, weak public-facing APIs, etc.

3 Pillars of Application Security

To protect the organization's applications from cyber-attacks, security engineers must establish a solid foundation in the three key components of application security: processes, technology, and people.

Each component ensures the organization’s applications' security.

1. Process

The processes component involves the guidelines, protocols, and workflows used for application management. Security engineers should design these processes to minimize risks and ensure the applications remain secure throughout their lifecycle.

2. Technology

The technology component includes the security measures that protect applications. With companies continuously introducing new products and technologies in the market, it's essential to understand the fundamental requirements for technology in application security.

3. People

Most organizations often overlook this crucial component. While they invest in cutting-edge technology and implement stringent processes, the People component determines the strength of the first two components. This component primarily focuses on managing Human Risk.

Human risk refers to the potential threat that human behavior poses to an organization, encompassing the partners with access to the organization's systems, as well as the actions and behaviors of employees, contractors, data, and information.

7 Must-Have Application Security Features

Below are the top seven must-have security features for apps:

1. Encryption

Experts recommend using robust encryption techniques, such as AES (Advanced Encryption Standard), to protect data. It is essential to secure sensitive information when it is stored and while it is in transit.

2. Authorization and Authentication

It is important to confirm the users' identities before allowing them access to the program. Password-based authentication, multi-factor authentication (MFA), biometric authentication, and other forms of authentication may fall under this category.

Authenticated users control the actions and resources they can access within the application. To enforce permissions, security engineers should use attribute-based access control (ABAC), role-based access control (RBAC), or any other preferred tool.

3. Logging

Logging methods can help track and monitor user activity, application events, and security-related occurrences when implemented. Log analysis tools can also identify when someone attempts to gain unauthorized access and probable security breaches.

4. Secure APIs

Secure APIs are required for safe data sharing between application ecosystem components. They use token authentication, API key management, rate restriction, and data encryption to prevent data breaches. Secure APIs also verify inputs, regulate access, and log activity for monitoring. API security is required to maintain app data integrity and confidentiality.

5. Input Validation

Several injection attacks, such as XSS, SQL injection, etc., can cause critical issues in an app. To prevent such attacks, security engineers must validate and sanitize user inputs using frameworks and libraries that have built-in capabilities for this purpose.

6. Secure Communication

When security teams want to ensure that clients and servers communicate securely, use HTTPS (HTTP Secure). Through the use of TLS (Transport Layer Security) or SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) protocols, HTTPS encrypts data while transmitting it, thereby preventing eavesdropping and man-in-the-middle attacks.

7. Security Headers

Security engineers should utilize security headers such as X-Content-Type or X-Frame Options, Content Security Policy (CSP), X-XSS-Protection, etc., to protect against various web-based attacks. Clickjacking, XSS, and MIME sniffing assaults are included in these attacks.

Application Security Standards to Assist Compliance

Some various global frameworks and standards provide guidelines for app development. Each organization can also have its own framework.

For those seeking a solid foundation, here are several noteworthy frameworks to contemplate:

1. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Framework

The standard manages risks for federal agencies and organizations in the United States. Several policies and publications form its basis, and it mandates the implementation of stringent security measures.

Understanding the key features of the NIST framework is critical. It provides a structured approach to identifying, protecting, detecting, responding to, and recovering from cybersecurity threats and incidents. By adhering to NIST guidelines, organizations can establish a robust security posture that aligns with industry best practices.

2. Series 27000 of ISO

It incorporates various policies to ensure the security of the application and its data. ISO certifications prove that an organization genuinely adheres to a global standard. Organizations must periodically renew certain certifications, which are applicable for a limited period, per the certification policy.

3. OWASP

The OWASP Application Security Verification Standard directs developers and security engineers toward secure coding practices. The standard provides a structured set of security requirements, covering multiple aspects of application security such as authentication, session management, access control, data protection, and more.

4. DSS (PCI-DSS)

Financial organizations that process debit cards, credit cards, online transactions, point-of-sale (POS) devices, and other related transactions implement the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI-DSS).

This standard enhances the security and flexibility of online transactions while ensuring the utmost protection against data leakage for end-users.

5. Application Security Posture Management (ASPM)

Gartner published ASPM, which offers tools that let businesses check security coverage, find patterns, and give each new application version a risk score based on its context.

Also, ASPM gives a complete picture of the application's security situation. This helps organizations find and lessen any possible risks. Taking action in this way can significantly cut down the time and resources organizations use to deal with security incidents, leading to a more efficient and safe process for developing applications.

Testing of Security Features

Security engineers should adopt various testing methodologies to ensure an application's security features function effectively. A combination of these approaches may also be beneficial.

• Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) identifies ways to help minimize personal user data risks.

• Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) or Blackbox Testing actively examines all running applications with penetration testing through tools like Netsparker, Nikto, etc.

• Static application security testing (SAST) analyses the source code to find bugs.

• The Rule-Based Web Application Firewall (WAF) examines the incoming traffic on the app and blocks malicious attempts.

Case Study

Let's explore a recent breach that transpired at Trello, the renowned project management application, in January 2024.

The Issue

Hackers were selling the data of about 15 million Trello users on the dark web. Hackers obtained this data, like usernames, passwords, and account information, through a publicly accessible Trello REST API, and the system detected no unauthorized access. It highlighted the need for security features focused on robust privacy settings and secure public-facing APIs.

The Solution

An API scanner crawled thousands of public-facing APIs and identified many vulnerabilities in them.

Trello then updated its API to require authentication to query public profile information to avoid data scraping.

You can read more about Roku, Cloudflare, LinkedIn, Curefit, and other such companies and how they handled their security vulnerabilities too.

Final Thoughts

App security is crucial in the current digital environment, where data breaches and regulatory compliance are major concerns. Key security features such as encryption, secure APIs, and multi-factor authentication help protect user data and maintain app integrity. Integrating robust security measures into app development prevents breaches and ensures compliance with industry standards like NIST, ISO, and OWASP.

Utilizing solutions like Akto, an advanced API security platform, organizations can significantly enhance their app's security. Akto's extensive suite of over 100 pre-made tests and custom testing capabilities helps identify and mitigate vulnerabilities effectively. This integration of security measures ensures a smoother process, safeguarding app and user data while supporting business continuity.

Book a demo with us today!