Minimize Application Flaws with Secure Software Development

Secure software development is one of the most talked about IT topics today. Concerning this, a common misconception that exists is that applications need to be secured after they are developed but prior to execution to the production environment. Conducting a security audit post the completion generally leads to a considerable amount of security flaws. Few of these flaws can include grave architectural concerns. In the best of situations, developers can expect to spend an enormous amount of time and energy to resolve these flaws. However, in a worst case scenario the application might just need recoding and an overhaul of its architecture. Carrying out application security this way is very costly and also time consuming. Incorporating security in the initial phases of the software development life cycle minimizes the expense and results in secure software development within a minimal time.

Software security challenges

There are few security challenges that drive the need for secure software development lifecycle to be more proactive through security by design. They are as follows:-

●   The epidemic nature of threats

●   The systematic challenges spotted in all development phases

●   The expensive influence of late phase detection

●   The increased awareness and concern for customers

●   Persistent issues of crucial defects

Keeping in mind all these concerns, organizations have realized the importance and benefits of having a secure software development process in place. A comprehensive secure software development gap analysis process can greatly benefit from effective security reviews of various applications that you have to set up a baseline. This review can also comprise code reviews, threat modeling and penetration testing. This baseline creation will allow the secure software development consultants to precisely understand the state of software safety within your environment. This is turn assists during the gap analysis and in recommendation that enable an enterprise to enhance its software security simultaneously offering IT projects on time and within an estimated budget

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Secure software development is a field that is undergoing rapid changes and development. If you are an IT student or professional and want to stay updated on the recent happenings in this section then you can refer to the software engineering magazine available online.

Another reliable source is the iee computer society that is available on the internet featuring expert IT analysts and researchers sharing their opinions on the subjects. Here you will have access to detailed reviews, news, authored computer articles and that like that will not only help you in your personal knowledge up gradation but also in your secure software training programs.

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Value of Software Certification for the Software Engineer

Technology and its innovations have made a mark in today’s business world. With both small and medium enterprises and large corporate house so dependent on the technology and computers for a networked environment, the need for skilled, competent, software engineering professionals is greater than ever. 

The Software Engineering field though relatively new as far as technological advancements go, has today advanced with scientific approaches.  As  programming languages  evolved  from assembly languages to a more methodical object oriented language, the proliferation of  application software in the late 70’s to early 80’s, software development has come a long way.  ‘Software engineering’ was first used in the 1968 NATO Software Engineering Conference, to provoke thought regarding "software crisis" prevalent at the time. Software engineering (SE) can be defined as a systematic approach to the analysis, design, assessment, implementation, testing, and maintenance and reengineering of software.

Nevertheless, to become a software engineer, the knowledge of programming is a pre-requisite. Further, computer societies expect strict adherence to the ISO/IEC technical reports 19759:2004 which categorically states that to be a professional in the field of software engineering requires the mastering of the knowledge through a four year graduate software engineering experience.  With a number of universities offering the graduate engineering program and information technology training, the computer societies have laid down an international standard curriculum to be followed by the universities.

However in a technologically enhanced world, with an increasing need for skilled, competent, and ardent software development professionals software certification has some major advantages. For the graduates, this helps to bridges the gap between your education and work requirements, whereas for the professionals, this confirms proficiency standards of established software development practices. For the employers too, this helps to make up a proficient workforce.

Globalization has resulted in migration of software development activities from the developed to the developing countries and has also brought in challenges of  time zone differences and the quality of  products developed. The advent of software development life cycles and other developments have helped experts in the field of software engineering to enhance their reliability and quality of products and services. However, with the changing technological trends, more software development platforms became accessible to the software engineer. Under such circumstances of increased competition and global markets, software certifications are very valuable.

Various professional societies offer certification courses on general software engineering skills for a certified software development professional or even an entry–level certification program for a development associate. Further, institutions also offer software certifications on specific technologies such as security, process improvement, software architecture which are in great demand. Such software certifications oriented towards specific technologies are also at times sponsored by leading IT giants.

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Why Software Engineering is Still the Best Job in the World

If you’re a software engineer, you’ve got the best job in the world. At least that’s what some people think. High pay. Low stress. Little physical exertion. Yes, it’s time again for the “Best Jobs” rankings—those glitzy slideshows ranking occupations in terms of job prospects, pay, stress, job satisfaction, and working conditions–and making the top jobs all sound just perfect.

In Careercast’s “Best Jobs of 2012” list, software engineer earned the No. 1 ranking for the second year running—followed by actuary, human resources manager, dental hygienist, and financial planner. With an overall score of 176 and annual salary of $88,142, software engineers deal with low stress and are in relatively high demand.

But occupations in the healthcare industry are nipping at tech jobs’ heels. Medical assistant ranked higher than database administrator, Web developer, computer systems analyst, and computer programmer in the “Best Jobs of 2012” list. And pharmacist, occupational therapist, and physical therapist were also in the Top 10.

Those of you working in the technology field already know that you’ve got it made, relatively speaking. Sure, it can be stressful when you’re finishing a project on deadline or trying to solve problems that at times seem unsolvable. But the pay and working conditions are much better than say, a lumberjack, which ranked among Careercast’s “Worst Jobs of 2012” due to its low pay, lack of job prospects, and dangerous working conditions.

And you can heave a collective sigh of relief that not a single technology job category made an appearance on Career Bliss’s “Unhappiest Jobs of 2012.” No, those were reserved for product manager, program manager, marketing manager, and director of sales (just in case any of you think about making the leap into sales or marketing).

And in case any of you are resenting that the software developer occupation was knocked from its pedestal by registered nurse, know that registered nurse was also the third-most-unhappy job of 2012. Just remember that next time you’re in the hospital.

If you work in software engineering  or development engineering, what do you think of your job? And if you’re looking for opportunities in software, visit the IEEE Computer Society ‘s computer careers .

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