5 Best Java Security Practices to Develop Secure Java Applications

Java security is critical to Java web application development. Java is known as the most secure programming language. While Java made huge advances over the traditional programming languages, especially C and C++, when it comes to security, the level of vulnerability of code written in Java depends on the best practices followed by a Java developer.

This particularly happens during the Java web application development phase. The emergence of new security techniques, hacking techniques, storage, and encryption techniques has put a big question mark on the security of Java. Besides these, one of the major challenges faced by Java developers is the security concern related to cloud migration. Furthermore, new security auditing techniques such as chaos engineering bring immense opportunities for Java developers to improve the security of their code.

This article highlights the 5 best Java security practices that a Java developer must follow when coding in Java in 2020. Practically, these measures should be implemented in the DevSecOps process, in which security will be built from scratch. These guidelines are even useful for auditing legacy code.

1. Audit Your External Libraries
External libraries are the most obvious sources of security vulnerability for Java-based applications. While working on any project, most of the time of developers is spent working with third-party libraries. With every new need of clients, developers add a new library. Therefore, it is very important for devs to thoroughly audit these external libraries for known security and performance vulnerabilities.

2. Manage Application Secrets
When it comes to managing application secrets, Java developers have fallen into some bad habits. The community can be divided into two groups - developers who compromise on security to deliver seamless experience of their software to users, and developers who expect users to spend long hours inputting credentials for their own good.

Java developers should learn to maintain the right balance between security and usability. Focusing only on usability may lead to insecure code while focusing mainly on security will minimize usability as users will have to spend most of their time trying to get around the security measures you've implemented, and eventually find a way around every security measure you've put in place.

When it comes to managing application secrets Java developers can explore and learn about the differences between CMS platforms. Most of the CMS platforms use high-quality key management services such as AWS KMS that ensure that code secret it is storing doesn't live in memory any longer. Going with this approach would be a great addition to a lot of Java applications.

3. Use Advanced Encryption Libraries
Java libraries for encryption have been extremely difficult to work with, particularly with APIs that offer little help to the average developers. This has compelled Java developers to take the matter in their hands and write their own encryption libraries. In fact, many developers rely on their own encryption libraries and are hesitant to use code written by some else. This is the biggest mistake. Moreover, there are developers who spend their entire working lives making robust and unhackable encryption libraries. The best way to ensure application security is to use advanced encryption libraries or built-in tools that Java provides you as these are more secure.

4. Validate User Inputs
To improve usability, you can spend some time validating user inputs. If done correctly, this will not only make your application secure but also make it easier to use. In 2020, user input does not only come from humans. The Mirai botnet has described the potential dangers of developers not properly validating inputs from IoT devices which are soon going to become critical in the future.

When it comes to implementing user validation, Java developers can simply leverage built-in Java tools. The scanner library offers standard implementation of user validation that can restrict user inputs to ensure security. With these validation tools, you don't need to write complex, custom validation logic.

5. Don't Create Something that is Already Available
This applies to all developers in all languages and in every field. Don't try to reinvent the wheel. The frequent headlines about security vulnerabilities discovered in the widely-used libraries often prompt developers to make their own libraries. If no one else can edit the libraries, then no one will discover security risks in it. However, the obscure code is not inherently more secure than the widely-used code. With open-source libraries, it is easy to find vulnerabilities as thousands of developers can review the code and identify issues that need to be fixed.

Be it Java web application development or development of Java mobile applications, this principle applies to everything you do as a Java developer.

Wrapping Up
Ensuring 100% security is next to impossible. These days, businesses using Java-based software are spending a huge amount of money on Java development services to ensure a higher level of security of applications. They hire Java developers who follow the best security practices to build highly secure and robust Java mobile applications or web applications. To make sure your application is completely secure, you may mess up with code, write insecure code, and even fall into the habit of using insecure libraries. The key to ensuring security in Java web application development is to deploy a system that keeps an eye on security vulnerabilities and address them well in advance. As Java continues to develop in 2020 and beyond, developers should scan the horizon of new security vulnerabilities and threats, and be prepared to respond to them. Already the influx of 5G and IoT technology has exposed the cybersecurity industry to many new challenges. As a Java developer, you should realize that ensuring security in their code is an on-going process and not a one-time event. For instance, you might have developed a secure application initially, but what about the additions made to your application by others? And what about the ways your users are using your developed application?

All these questions should be addressed through careful auditing throughout the software's lifecycle. Instead of writing your own code and using it for the project, the devs team should put in place rigorous monitoring processes to ensure the security of the software from day one. It takes years to gain the trust of users and if they encountered data breach due to your developed program, it can completely ruin your relationship with them as well as your reputation. Therefore, as a reliable Java development company or Java developer, you should take this responsibility very seriously.