What Developers Need to Know About Java Security
Back in the days, when there was no technology or we can say there was technology but not as evolved as it is now. We were not used to doing things with the help of machines, and none the less we worked like machines back then. But as technology started its evolution, the world started changing. A lot of machines were designed to accommodate the human race. The evolution of technology did not stop there, and we reached a point where we started automating those machines for multitasking. That, in some cases, even involved computers and the set of instructions we used to tell the machine its work is called programming. Some of them were general-purpose, some were object-oriented, and some had both the characteristics. When we talk about a general-purpose programming language that is also object-oriented, the first name that pops up in mind is Java.
What is Java?
It is a programming language that is class-based, concurrent, and most importantly, it is a language that focuses on nullifying the implementation dependencies. The intention was to just write the code once and run it anywhere, and it would work. Any platform that supports java, you can run that code on it without even recompiling it. If talking about applications of java in today's world, java is used in banking, android, stock market, big data, retail, and many more. Well, java was developed back in 1995 by three friends James Gosling, Mike Sheridan, and Patrick Naughton, and they call themselves the green team. They designed the language for an organization named Sun Microsystems.
What Developers Need to Know About Its Security
When it comes to software development, programming, or any other aspect of information technology, security is the most crucial issue. The same is the case with Java or any other programming language. When java was developed back in the 90s, there was C and C++ that developers used for business programming. But there were some pitfalls in C and C++, and when java came into the market, it became a quick success. Because those pitfalls were not there in java. There were very lesser vulnerabilities in java if compared to other languages. But it still does not save you from everything that can go wrong regarding security. There are some practices developers need to know about java security that is listed down.
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- Keep Auditing External Libraries
When it comes to java security, even a little thing matters the most. And external libraries are a big part of programming in java, and there could be multiple reasons for that. Your code and the code of that library both can become a victim for any reason. The main reason is that we do not even list down the external libraries that we are using for our system. Not all of them, but some can be carrying vulnerabilities that cam halt your system. Being careful about these vulnerabilities is a part of a developer's job, so a developer should always review the code of a library before using it.
- Use Mature Encryption Libraries
When it comes to using java's encryption libraries, developers hesitate a little. Why? Maybe because the encryption libraries of java are complex and not so easy to understand. There is a big percentage of developers when they confront these libraries they think of writing their libraries. But it is not all about writing them it is about writing them in a way that nobody can decrypt them, and it is not possible. So, it is recommended to invest time in understanding the existing libraries. As they are the tested libraries, that can save you from many problems in the future.
- Manage Application Secrets
One of the biggest challenges for developers is to manage the secrets of application. Every developer wants to keep a balance between the user interface and security. Developers can use a secret manager for this. As trusted secret managers can keep your secrets safe, and they can also provide you with the libraries you need. You can also take training and do it yourself. If we talk about java for web development, you can attend a web development Bootcamp where you can learn a lot about it.
- Validate Your Inputs
Validating the inputs from users is a vital part of the security of software. There can be some cases where the users are making the software less secure, and to avoid the user input validation is necessary. In java, it is a very simple thing, and a developer can easily do it.
- Avoid Reinventing Every Wheel
As we have discussed earlier a lot of developers stop using third party libraries just to avoid vulnerabilities, and they rather write their own logic. But we all know there is nothing like the perfect security, plus it is not good for your business as well. You cannot rely on obscurity for long, as when someone else will try to use your code they will find it very difficult.
Instead, just go with the libraries that are already there but review them before using them. That will be best for your system and your business.
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