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Mathematics, Mathematics, Software Engineering, Computers - General & Miscellaneous

Writing Secure Code

by Michael Howard, David E. LeBlanc
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Overview

Keep black-hat hackers at bay with the tips and techniques in this entertaining, eye-opening book! Developers will learn how to padlock their applications throughout the entire development process—from designing secure applications to writing robust code that can withstand repeated attacks to testing applications for security flaws. Easily digested chapters reveal proven principles, strategies, and coding techniques. The authors—two battle-scarred veterans who have solved some of the industry’s toughest security problems—provide sample code in several languages. This edition includes updated information about threat modeling, designing a security process, international issues, file-system issues, adding privacy to applications, and performing security code reviews. It also includes enhanced coverage of buffer overruns, Microsoft® .NET security, and Microsoft ActiveX® development, plus practical checklists for developers, testers, and program managers.

No more malicious attacks! Learn the best practices for writing secure code, with samples in Microsoft Visual Basic®.NET, Visual C++®, Perl, and Visual C#®.

Synopsis

Writing Secure Code" covers the major aspects of creating secure applications through the entire development process. Its short, easily-digested chapters can provide software designers, architects, developers, and testers with the training, theory, and techniques they need to take the right actions to ensure security.

About the Author, Michael Howard

Michael Howard is a security program manager on the Microsoft WindowsXP team, focusing on secure design, programming and testing techniques. He works with hundreds of people both inside and outside the company to help them secure their applications each year. He is the primary author of Desiging Secure Web-Based Applications for Microsoft Windows 2000 from Microsoft Press. Prior to working in WindowsXP, Michael worked on next-generation Web server technologies and IIS. He has worked on Windows NT® security since 1992

David LeBlanc is a senior security technologist in ITG at Microsoft. His primary role is defending the Microsoft network from attack. He has worked in the security field throughout his professional life, including working at Internet Security Systems where he was the primary engineer on ISS' award-winning security products. David serves on a number of external security-related advisory boards.

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Editorials

From Barnes & Noble

The Barnes & Noble Review
Your code will be attacked. You need to assume it will run in the most hostile environments imaginable -- and design, code, and test accordingly. Writing Secure Code, Second Edition shows you how.

This edition draws on the lessons learned and taught throughout Microsoft during the firm’s massive 2002 “Windows Security Push.” It’s a huge upgrade to the respected First Edition, with new coverage across the board.

Michael Howard and David LeBlanc first help you define what security means to your customers -- and implement a three-pronged strategy for securing design, defaults, and deployment. There’s especially useful coverage of threat modeling -- decomposing your application, identifying threats, ranking them, and mitigating them.

Then, it’s on to in-depth coverage of today’s key security issues from the developer’s standpoint. Everyone knows buffer overruns are bad: Here’s a full chapter on avoiding them. You’ll learn how to establish appropriate access controls and default to running with least privilege. There’s detailed coverage of overcoming attacks on cryptography (for example, avoiding poor random numbers and bit-flipping attacks). You’ll learn countermeasures for virtually every form of user input attack, from malicious database updates to cross-site scripting.

We’ve just scratched the surface: There are authoritative techniques for securing sockets and RPC, protecting against DOS attacks, building safer .NET applications, reviewing and testing code, adding privacy features, and even writing high-quality security documentation. Following these techniques won’t just improve security -- it’ll dramatically improve robustness and reliability, too. Bill Camarda

Bill Camarda is a consultant, writer, and web/multimedia content developer. His 15 books include Special Edition Using Word 2000 and Upgrading & Fixing Networks For Dummies®, Second Edition.

Book Details

Published
December 1, 2002
Publisher
Microsoft Press
Pages
800
Format
Paperback
ISBN
9780735617223

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