How can you refactor your web application without compromising security?

1 Test your code before and after refactoring

One of the core principles of agile methodologies is to test your code frequently and thoroughly. This helps you catch and fix bugs, errors, and vulnerabilities before they affect your users or expose your data. When you refactor your web application, you should always write and run unit tests, integration tests, and end-to-end tests before and after refactoring to ensure that your code still works as expected and meets your security requirements.

2 Use secure coding standards and tools

Another way to refactor your web application without compromising security is to follow secure coding standards and use tools that help you enforce them. Secure coding standards are guidelines and best practices that help you avoid common security pitfalls and write code that is more secure, robust, and compliant. For example, you should use secure input validation, output encoding, encryption, hashing, and authentication methods. You should also use tools such as code analyzers, linters, and scanners that can detect and flag potential security issues in your code.

3 Refactor in small and frequent iterations

Refactoring your web application in small and frequent iterations can help you reduce the complexity and scope of your changes, making them easier to review and test. This can also help you minimize the impact of refactoring on your existing functionality and security features. You should refactor your web application in a way that preserves its functionality and security, rather than adding new features or changing the behavior of your code. You should also use version control and branching to keep track of your refactoring progress and revert to a previous state if needed.

4 Review and audit your refactored code

Before you deploy your refactored web application, you should review and audit your code to ensure that it meets your security standards and expectations. You should perform code reviews with your peers or experts who can provide feedback and suggestions on how to improve your code quality and security. You should also perform security audits with tools or services that can scan your code and web application for vulnerabilities, misconfigurations, or weaknesses. You should fix any issues that you find and document your refactoring process and results.

5 Educate yourself and your team on security best practices

Finally, refactoring your web application without compromising security requires that you and your team are aware and knowledgeable of the security best practices and challenges that apply to your web application. You should educate yourself and your team on the latest security trends, threats, and solutions that affect your web application and its users. You should also follow the security principles of least privilege, defense in depth, and security by design. You should also foster a culture of security awareness and responsibility among your team members and stakeholders.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?