5 Steps to Increase Your Software’s Security

Software security is a big concern for every business around the world. When we think about it, a few common questions arise — what are the main threats lurking on the Internet? How can we prevent these threats and secure our business software? And we are sure if you have the software yourself, you also have the same questions. But don’t worry; we are going to tell you five steps to increase your software’s security.

The Internet is a boundless sea full of information. It allows us to access information on all subjects and to search for or buy whatever we want. However, it is not only consumers who are searching for information but also hackers. Unlike customers, hackers intend to harm your business and your customers. Moreover, they are the experts capable of exploiting the vulnerability of software to take possession of valuable data and information.

So, whatever the reason for using software solutions, having a safe and secure system is a fundamental thing to focus on. Otherwise, hackers may enter your system and cause irreversible damage to your digital assets and your company’s reputation. Therefore, you need to know how to increase your software’s security.

But before that, should we not learn the major threats online that can affect your software? I think we should. So, let’s have a look at those threats.

What Are the Threats to Software’s Security?

Here is a simple list of the most common software security threats. However, we must bear in mind that these threats are constantly evolving as cybercriminals become more cunning in engineering attacks every day.

1. Ransomware

Ransomware is a computer virus that makes data on infected computers inaccessible until a ransom is paid. If our computer has been infected instead of the classic background, we will see a warning proposing a cash ransom to obtain a password capable of unlocking all the contents. And Ransomware has grown a lot in recent years, so you must be careful.

2. Phishing

Phishing is an online scam that involves sending fake or spoofed emails that trick people into revealing sensitive information like passwords and credit card numbers. It is usually done by sending email messages that have an identical appearance in content, logo, sender, and graphics to well-known brands in which the recipient is invited to provide data for some apparently good reason.

3. Malware

Malware or “malicious software” is a generic term that describes a malicious program or code that puts a software system at risk. Some Malware aims to disable the software; some are secretly installed in software to exploit its users. Suppose a search engine detects malware on your online application. In that case, people trying to access the application may receive a warning saying, “This site could harm your computer”, discouraging users from browsing and damaging your reputation.

4. DDoS attacks

DDoS (Distributed Denial-of-Service) attacks usually involve “bots” (robotic agents) that deliberately overwhelm a company’s server with access requests, rendering the website inaccessible and often even crashing the server.

Hope you understand the various types of threats to your online software solution. Now let’s discuss how to increase your software’s security to prevent these threats.

5 Steps To Increase Your Software’s Security

To avoid any inconveniences related to the security of your software, you can rely on advanced technologies. But that won’t make everything secure. You need to go beyond that. And that is what we are going to talk about now.

There are several ways to take precautions regarding increasing your software’s security. But we are going to talk about the most important of them all. And we hope that your software will remain secure if you take care of these. 

1. Install an SSL certificate

You’ve probably noticed that some online software or website URLs start with HTTP while others start with HTTPS. The “S” stands for secure encryption, which can only be guaranteed with an SSL certificate.

Well, if your software is not operating online, you won’t need an SSL certificate. But once you go online, you must install an SSL certificate to increase security.

Installing an SSL certificate creates an encrypted connection between a user’s browser and your web server. This connection ensures that all data is exchanged over a secure connection. With an SSL certificate, therefore, it is possible to protect the data of its users by preventing cyber criminals from intercepting and reading the information transferred.

2. Use Strong Passwords

Passwords are among the weakest points in the entire Internet security structure. In fact, users tend to choose simple passwords to be able to remember them. And unfortunately, that becomes your software’s weak point, which is easy for cybercriminals to guess.

Instead of choosing a weak password, choose complex passwords, at least ten characters long and made up of letters (upper and lower case), numbers, and special characters.

It is also necessary to avoid using the same password for all accesses but to diversify the passwords to have one different from the other.

3. Choose A Secure Data Centre

A data centre or hosting service is one of the most important things in your software’s security. But business owners often undermine this aspect. If you are doing the same, we would say you are making a grave mistake.

The choice of hosting plan, data centre, and server type is also fundamental for your software’s security. So, choosing a secure platform decreases the damage of possible cyber-attacks.

So, we always advise people to choose a hosting provider with comprehensive monitoring and firewall protection.

4. Keep All Software Up to Date

Hackers often target older versions of software. Did you have any idea about it before? If you haven’t, you must consider this. But do they attack older versions?

The security patches are weak in an older version of the software. And the loopholes in the security patches help hackers exploit your system very easily.

So, make sure to install updates as soon as they’re released. For example, you have an online core banking solution based on Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP, and a number of integrated software – they all need to be updated.

The most important updates in terms of security are:

• Server operating systems (Linux, Windows)
• Client operating systems (Android, iOS, Linux, Windows)
• Important server-side software
• Important client-side software

5. Conduct Your Software’s Security Audits Regularly

Last but not least, conducting your software’s security audits helps you identify and fix vulnerabilities before they can do any harm. You could use a scanning tool that will scan your software for malware, errors, and outdated elements.

But the question is, what will you audit exactly?

Well, you can check the servers, firewall, your software’s code for any bugs, etc. We know it does not seem easy for you, and most even don’t understand. But you can solve this problem by hiring a company that regularly monitors your software and servers.

In short, your software’s security is a very important thing to be taken care of. And if you don’t, you might end up damaging your company’s reputation and customer privacy. So, make sure you take those 5 security precautions and keep your software secure from attacks.