OWASP Top 10: Web Application Vulnerabilities

The OWASP Top 10 is a standard awareness document for web application security. It represents a broad consensus about the most critical security risks to web applications. Understanding these vulnerabilities is essential for every developer and security professional.

SQL Injection (SQLi) remains one of the most dangerous web vulnerabilities. Attackers inject malicious SQL code into application queries to manipulate databases, steal data, or gain unauthorized access. Prevention involves using parameterized queries, prepared statements, and input validation.

Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) allows attackers to inject malicious scripts into web pages viewed by other users. There are three types: Stored XSS, Reflected XSS, and DOM-based XSS. Mitigation strategies include output encoding, Content Security Policy (CSP) headers, and proper input sanitization.

Broken Authentication and Security Misconfiguration are common vulnerabilities that arise from weak password policies, exposed default credentials, and improperly configured security headers. Implementing multi-factor authentication (MFA), secure session management, and regular security audits are essential preventive measures.

Tools like Burp Suite and OWASP ZAP are invaluable for testing web applications against these vulnerabilities. Regular security assessments, code reviews, and adopting secure coding practices like input validation, output encoding, and the principle of least privilege are fundamental to building secure web applications.