Many web developers use the PHP programming language to build their applications. If you're part of this group, it's important that you know how to secure your applications from hackers who can steal data and deface or disable your site. In this article, we'll show you six simple ways to do just that. Follow these tips and your web applications will be much safer from attack.
- Cross-Site Scripting (XSS)
In short, cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities are typically caused by incorrectly sanitized user input. For example, a website might store an account ID in a variable and subsequently pass it back in JavaScript without making sure that it isn't modified before sending it back out on subsequent pages. The attackers can take advantage of these weaknesses by placing scripts in your websites that they retrieve information they send back to your users. The attackers will then attack other users of your application who trust you and haven't yet discovered your data breach. That's why, when you hire a php developer at hello web solutions, they know how to guide you past such hacks, so contact them today before it's too late! At hello web solutions, we're acutely aware of the procedures that need to be followed when hiring php developers or when developing your own applications. So in point of fact, we observe them as rigidly as we can We ensure that all client data is securely handled at all times by ensuring we take every necessary precaution to store or write client data. That means our staff are constantly updating themselves about current security practices, so you don't have to worry about hackers exploiting flaws in our code or techniques.
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- Encrypt Sensitive Data
Encrypting sensitive data, such as usernames, passwords, credit card numbers, and other sensitive information you don't want malicious entities accessing, is a simple way to protect your applications. When combined with SSL encryption on both your website and database connections, it's a great first step in guaranteeing safety. Several encryption methods exist, but the most popular for web developers is PHP sessions for storing encrypted values. These PHP sessions allow storing small amounts of encrypted data easily accessible by logged-in users. In addition, they help to prevent cross-site scripting attacks because they restrict a hacker's ability to access session cookies via cross-site requests. It is not possible to session hijack when using PHP sessions because session IDs are generated randomly at each request and are stored in an encrypted cookie or hidden form field that is accessible only by server-side code (and not client-side code).
- Use HTTPS
If you only allow HTTPS for web application traffic, the information transferred between your server and a user's browser will be encrypted, making it harder for a hacker to intercept. Particularly if you're taking care of any type of user authentication or online transactions, https has emerged as the technology to be aware of. What's more, Google has announced that websites using https will be getting a slight search engine ranking boost! There are many ways to encrypt your website and make it HTTPS compatible; we recommend using Let's Encrypt. It's a free, open-source, and fairly simple-to-set-up certificate. If you want to set up a Let's Encrypt certificate with Apache, here's how you can do it . In the event that you have another type of server and not nginx, take a look at How To Set Up an SSL Certificate with Nginx and you can also use Certbot, which automates the process for you. Regardless of which of these you choose, make sure your site is secure!
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- Session Hijacking
One of the most common ways hackers invade web applications is through session hijacking. Once a session has been hijacked, it means that a hacker has stolen another user's login information and is accessing private data. To make sure users' accounts are secure, use SSL on all login pages and on pages where sensitive data is stored. Additionally, change default passwords at regular intervals. we recommend changing passwords every six months and making sure to disable uploads. Inspect your server regularly for malware. Next, you'll want to setup a firewall on your server that allows for only authorized IP addresses to have access. If you're looking for PHP development companies, we can help you out!
- Stop SQL Injection Attacks in Their Tracks
This is one of, if not THE most common attacks you'll face as a PHP Developer. In this tutorial, we'll show you how to check for it and protect your application In order to help protect your website from SQL injection and XSS attacks, check out these two tutorials. Hopefully you can use them to ward off attacks, so your site will be a little safer and maybe, who knows, one of your clients will even hire you. 🙂 Turn on SSL/TLS Encryption: As web application attackers use more sophisticated tools to infiltrate them, it's crucial that your web applications have some form of encryption. Utilizing an SSL/TLS service such as Let's Encrypt or Apache FlexSSL is a great way to make sure all traffic between users and your application is encrypted end-to-end, making it much harder for attackers to steal data from. The extra traffic to support this, along with another nice side effect of helping to boost search engine rankings by Google, is really nothing. And if you want another level of protection?
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- Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF)
Cross-site request forgery (CSRF) is an attack that leverages the web application's trust in the user's browser. Attackers might exploit the web application's sessions or state management to force the user's browser to send forged requests to other users' browsers. Due to these requests seeming legit and coming from within their context, they're processed by applications, which lack a human interaction, in most cases. When executed properly, a CSRF attack trick users into sending malicious requests to other users. Because web developers can't distinguish whether requests are coming from valid sources, CSRF attacks are difficult to defend against. CSRF attacks can be mitigated by making use of token-based authentication. This approach makes use of tokens generated server-side and passed along with each request made by clients—typically as hidden form fields or query string parameters.
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