What is security testing in software testing with examples

Software Engineering. Web Technology. Cyber Security. C Programming. Control System. Data Mining. Data Warehouse. Javatpoint Services JavaTpoint offers too many high quality services. Principle of Security testing Here, we will discuss the following aspects of security testing: Availability Integrity Authorization Confidentiality Authentication Non-repudiation Availability In this, the data must be retained by an official person, and they also guarantee that the data and statement services will be ready to use whenever we need it.

Integrity In this, we will secure those data which have been changed by the unofficial person. The primary objective of integrity is to permit the receiver to control the data that is given by the system.

Authorization It is the process of defining that a client is permitted to perform an action and also receive the services. Confidentiality It is a security process that protracts the leak of the data from the outsider's because it is the only way where we can make sure the security of our data. Authentication The authentication process comprises confirming the individuality of a person, tracing the source of a product that is necessary to allow access to the private information or the system.

Non- repudiation It is used as a reference to the digital security, and it a way of assurance that the sender of a message cannot disagree with having sent the message and that the recipient cannot repudiate having received the message. Key Areas in Security Testing While performing the security testing on the web application, we need to concentrate on the following areas to test the application: System software security In this, we will evaluate the vulnerabilities of the application based on different software such as Operating system, Database system , etc.

Network security In this, we will check the weakness of the network structure, such as policies and resources. Server-side application security We will do the server-side application security to ensure that the server encryption and its tools are sufficient to protect the software from any disturbance.

Client-side application security In this, we will make sure that any intruders cannot operate on any browser or any tool which is used by customers. Risk Assessment To moderate the risk of an application, we will go for risk assessment.

Vulnerability Scanning It is an application that is used to determine and generates a list of all the systems which contain the desktops, servers, laptops, virtual machines, printers, switches, and firewalls related to a network. Penetration testing Penetration testing is a security implementation where a cyber-security professional tries to identify and exploit the weakness in the computer system.

Security Auditing Security auditing is a structured method for evaluating the security measures of the organization. Ethical hacking Ethical hacking is used to discover the weakness in the system and also helps the organization to fix those security loopholes before the nasty hacker exposes them. Posture Assessment It is a combination of ethical hacking, risk assessments, and security scanning , which helps us to display the complete security posture of an organization.

How we perform security testing The security testing is needed to be done in the initial stages of the software development life cycle because if we perform security testing after the software execution stage and the deployment stage of the SDLC, it will cost us more.

And the test plan should contain the following: The test data should be linked to security testing. For security testing, we need the test tools. With the help of various security tools, we can analyze several test outputs. Write the test scenarios or test cases that rely on security purposes. Example of security testing Generally, the type of security testing includes the problematic steps based on overthinking, but sometimes the simple tests will help us to uncover the most significant security threats.

Let us see a sample example to understand how we do security testing on a web application: Firstly, log in to the web application.

And then log out of the web application. Then click the BACK button of the browser to verify that it was asking us to log in again, or we are already logged-in the application.

Why security testing is essential for web applications At present, web applications are growing day by day, and most of the web application is at risk. Client-side attacks Authentication Authorization Command execution Logical attacks Information disclosure Client-side attacks The client-side attack means that some illegitimate implementation of the external code occurs in the web application. Note: Here, Spoofing is a trick to create duplicate websites or emails.

There should be proper documentation and process of reconstruction for correct recovery. The recovery team should have their unique strategy for retrieving the important code and data to bring the operation of the agency back to normalcy. The strategy can be unique to each organization based on the criticality of the systems they are handling. Each of these strategies has cost factor associated with it and multiple resources required for multiple back-ups may consume more physical resources or may need an independent team.

Many companies may be affected due to their data and code dependency on the concerned developer agency. For instance, if Amazon AWS goes down its shuts 25 of the internet. Independent Restoration is crucial in such cases.

Most large corporations have independent auditors to perform recovery test exercises periodically. The expense of maintaining and testing a comprehensive disaster recovery plan can be substantial, and it may be prohibitive for smaller businesses.

Smaller risks may rely on their data backups and off-site storage plans to save them in the case of a catastrophe. These tools can also detect if particular lines of code or branches of logic are not actually able to be reached during program execution, which is inefficient and a potential security concern. Some SAST tools incorporate this functionality into their products, but standalone products also exist.

Since the functionality of analyzing coverage is being incorporated into some of the other AST tool types, standalone coverage analyzers are mainly for niche use.

While the term ASTO is newly coined by Gartner since this is an emerging field, there are tools that have been doing ASTO already, mainly those created by correlation-tool vendors. It is still too early to know if the term and product lines will endure, but as automated testing becomes more ubiquitous, ASTO does fill a need.

There are many factors to consider when selecting from among these different types of AST tools. If you are wondering how to begin, the biggest decision you will make is to get started by beginning using the tools. According to a Microsoft security study , 76 percent of U. Our strongest recommendation is that you exclude yourself from these percentages. There are factors that will help you to decide which type of AST tools to use and to determine which products within an AST tool class to use.

It is important to note, however, that no single tool will solve all problems. As stated above, security is not binary; the goal is to reduce risk and exposure. Before looking at specific AST products, the first step is to determine which type of AST tool is appropriate for your application.

Until your application software testing grows in sophistication, most tooling will be done using AST tools from the base of the pyramid, shown in blue in the figure below. These are the most mature AST tools that address most common weaknesses. After you gain proficiency and experience, you can consider adding some of the second-level approaches shown below in blue.

For instance, many testing tools for mobile platforms provide frameworks for you to write custom scripts for testing. Having some experience with traditional DAST tools will allow you to write better test scripts. Likewise, if you have experience with all the classes of tools at the base of the pyramid, you will be better positioned to negotiate the terms and features of an ASTaaS contract.

The decision to employ tools in the top three boxes in the pyramid is dictated as much by management and resource concerns as by technical considerations. If you are able to implement only one AST tool, here are some guidelines for which type of tool to choose:. In the long run, incorporating AST tools into the development process should save time and effort on re-work by catching issues earlier. In practice, however, implementing AST tools requires some initial investment of time and resources.

Our guidance presented above is intended to help you select an appropriate starting point. After you begin using AST tools, they can produce lots of results, and someone must manage and act on them. These tools also have many knobs and buttons for calibrating the output, but it takes time to set them at a desirable level. Both false positives and false negatives can be troublesome if the tools are not set correctly. SAP Expand child menu Expand. Web Expand child menu Expand.

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