Your slick web app just launched, social buzz is building and new signups are flooding in. Everything seems to be firing well – until that shocking morning security engineers notify you of a data breach.
Turns out criminals uncovered an SQL injection flaw weeks prior and have quietly been siphoning out customer details ever since. And they aren‘t done yet – the attack persists as you scramble to contain damages.
By the time it‘s over, millions of customers personal data now sits on the dark web. Trust evaporates. Lawsuits get filed. Your brand suffers an incalculable reputation hit.
And the whole fiasco could have been prevented with basic web vulnerability scanning.
This fictional scenario has played out at far too many well-known companies recently:
- Uber – 57 million records breached in 2016 due to AWS key leakage.
- Facebook – Data scandals affecting 87+ million users stemming from platform vulnerabilities.
- Marriott – 383+ million guest details stolen from unpatched systems.
These incidents and thousands of others demonstrate one absolute truth about web applications – if vulnerabilities exist, hackers will find them. All web apps have flaws and exposed attack surfaces. The key is discovering those security gaps BEFORE cyber criminals and fixing them immediately.
This article explains why that upfront time investment in proactive web scanning and remediation pays back exponentially in risk reduction. We‘ll clarify why websites make tempting targets, walk through using automated vulnerability scanners to uncover flaws in your systems, along with outlining remediation best practices.
Let‘s dig in on better securing those web apps and avoiding tomorrow‘s breach headlines…
Web Apps Pose Fruitful Targets Rife with Vulnerabilities
Before diving into securing web applications, it‘s worth enumerating why they make such attractive hacker targets. A few reasons:
1. Most Companies Utilize Them Extensively
Websites and web apps now represent most businesses‘ primary digital interfaces – where customers interact and many key functions operate. Unlocking the data or control mechanisms behind the web app means access to the company‘s most critical systems and sensitive data assets.
2. Broad Attack Surfaces Across Complex Systems
Modern web app ecosystems incorporate many interconnected components:
Each element introduces vulnerabilities a hacker could exploit to compomise the application – misconfigured web servers, buggy application code allowing script injection on the frontend, weak authentication APIs granting intruder access, and unpatched databases chock full of sensitive records on the backend.
The extensive scope breeds security gaps.
3. Most Sites Have Existing Vulnerabilities
Don‘t operate under the illusion your web app codebase upholds impeccable secure coding standards. Chances are vulnerabilities exist within all that application logic. Statistics indicate most web apps contain multiple flaws:
- 75% have unpatched vulnerabilities known over a year old (Positive Technologies)
- The average web app contains over 26 vulnerabilities (Edgescan)
- 1 in 8 have critical vulnerabilities under active exploitation (Whitehat)
Add in complex functional needs, quick release cycles, and legacy compatibility demands…it‘s little wonder vulnerabilities persist in web systems.
Which brings us to our first major recommendation…
Utilize Automated Scanners to Uncover Your Web Apps‘ Vulnerabilities
Knowing most custom web applications contain bugs and misconfigurations, just waiting to be discovered by attackers, proactive assessments emerge as a necessary step.
Web vulnerability scanning tools crawl through websites and web systems seeking known flaws, acting much like an automated penetration test. Any vulnerabilities uncovered then get remediated before criminals have a chance to find them.
Let‘s explore a particularly robust web scanner:
Invicti Web Vulnerability Scanner
Invicti application security scanner serves as one of the industry‘s top web vulnerability detection tools. Capabilities extending far beyond just scanning that enable strengthened web security:
FIND MORE FLAWS
- Crawls entire web domains seeking vulnerabilities – don‘t just scan home pages
- Injection attacks – SQLi, XSS, LDAP, etc.
- Authentication issues – passwords, sessions, cryptography
- Server misconfigurations – systems, platforms, web apps
- Business logic flaws – encryption, data validation, workflows
ASSIST REMEDIATION
- Detailed flaw descriptions
- Exact vulnerable code locations
- Proof of concept examples
- Remediation guidance
FLEXIBLE SCANNING
- Cloud hosted or on-premise deployments
- APIs for automation integration
- Scales for large, complex sites
- Suits CI/CD pipeline testing
COMPLIANCE SUPPORT
- Reports certifying security posture
- GDPR, PCI-DSS, ISO 27001 standards
The above gives a sampling of Invicti‘s robust web application scanning capabilities. Their software plays a pivotal role in identifying vulnerabilities, mapping attack surfaces, enabling targeted code reviews and compliance processes that strengthen web security postures.
Now let‘s walk through utilizing Invicti scanners…
Running Invicti Vulnerability Scans
Conducting scans with Invicti breaks down into a straightforward process:
Step 1. Register Invicti Account
Multiple Invicti pricing options exist depending on scan volume needs. Sign up for a free trial to kick the tires.
Step 2. Configure Web App for Scanning
Provide Invicti‘s crawlers access to your web app. You‘ll validate site ownership through DNS records, HTML tags, file uploads or other methods.
Designate specific URLs/domains for scanning or enable deeper "Crawl Entire Website" assessments encompassing your web app‘s full footprint.
Step 3. Launch Vulnerability Scan
Invicti‘s automated bots get to work probing your web app for vulnerabilities – crawling links, investigatingparameters and inputs, assessing authentication methods, auditing configurations, and more.
Thorough scans of large production web apps can take hours to fully complete. Let the scans run their course.
Step 4. Review Scan Results
Once scans finish, Invicti delivers detailed reporting around discovered web vulnerabilities and misconfigurations:
Address highest severity findings first. For each:
- Reproduce the vulnerability – Confirm reproducibility on latest web app versions.
- Determine root causes – Understand which software components enable the vulnerability.
- Remediate flaws – Work with app owners and vendors to implement fixes quickly.
Don‘t ignore lower severity vulnerabilities either – re-scan after changes and ensure your web apps test clean across the board.
Securing Web Apps Requires More than Just Scanning
While vulnerability testing represents a great starting point for uncovering web app risks, additional practices round out robust security across the full web asset lifecycle:
| Development | Stop bugs before code ever ships. Validate inputs. Adopt secure architecture. Pen test early. |
|---|---|
| Deployment | Harden web servers, apply patches frequently, encrypt traffic. Isolate services. |
| Operations | Perform scans on schedule. Log monitoring. Emergency response planning. |
| Decomission | Archive data properly. Wipe disks completely. Audit all sunsetted web resources. |
Expanding assessments and controls beyond penetration testing demonstrates maturity via "shifting security left". Addressing vulnerabilities pre-production while continuing scans and monitoring thereafter represents a modern web appsec strategy.
Prioritize Remediation – Don‘t Give Hackers A Chance
The biggest mistake organizations make after receiving vulnerability scan results? Failing to follow up promptly with fixes.
Letting scan findings sit risks attackers discovering and weaponizing the same flaws against you first. Don‘t grant them that opportunity.
Upon vulnerabilities discovery through scans, prioritize remediation by:
Validating Scan Results – Confirm reported vulnerabilities impact the latest versions of web apps and pose credible threats.
Determining Root Causes – Understand which software layers introduced the vulnerabilities – apps, systems, dependencies?
Implementing Fixes Quickly – Work with app owners and vendors to patch, upgrade, replace vulnerable components ASAP.
Dates and times matter with vulnerabilities – the faster you remediate, the better. Race hackers to the fixes!
Your Web Security Posture Sets The Tone For Whole Business
Some leaders question the returns on web app vulnerability investments thinking customers don‘t care. Don‘t fall into that trap.
Beyond protecting customer data and compliance demands, security drives trust – the foundation for all digital businesses.
Consider web apps the front doors to organizations in 2023. First impressions matter, so that entryway better be sturdy against kicks, resistant to break-ins, and give confidence valued data sits protected behind its walls.
Proactively scanning and hardening web apps makes smart business sense too:
- Prevents expensive data breaches and resulting legal liabilities
- Boosts customer confidence and satisfaction
- Saves IT resources playing constant defense
- Enables focus on core business goals
So regularly assess those web apps, infrastructure, policies, and processes supporting them. Identify and fix weaknesses before you become the next shocking data breach headline or untrustworthy brand.
Stay vigilant out there!
