A Guide to Writing Secure PHP Codes to Avoid Vulnerabilities
While writing codes, developers may accidentally write a vulnerable code at some point and this may create lots of issues during the release of the application. It is very important to have a complete overview of the PHP security and also understand some tools to help you detect those vulnerabilities in your code. PHP secured codes have always been a topic of high concern and it is very important to improve the overall security of your PHP application.
Here in this blog, I will share with you some important points that you should consider while writing secure PHP codes.
Don’t trust user input:
“Not to trust the user input” is a line that PHP developers should incorporate into their daily coding practices as most of the vulnerabilities in the codes are caused just because the developer did not include codes to correctly sanitize the form of user input. The most recent PHP vulnerabilities at the time of coding are all caused due to trusting the user input. They are either XSS, CSRF, SQL injection, RFI vulnerabilities and all of these are caused just because the developer did not correctly sanitize the user input before using it in the application or just because the output was not checked before sending it to the web browser.
Sanitize both input and output:
Whenever data arrives to your web application from the visitor’s browser, it is important for the PHP developers to write codes in such a manner that it gets sanitized as it arrives. The developers should ensure that the data is sanitized as soon as it arrives or at the earliest. Even though you have checked this data as it arrives, it should be re-sanitized when it is displayed to other site visitors. So, when you sanitize the output, you should sanitize it late as in this way you can be sure that there are no modifications once it is done and before it is sent to the web browser.
How to validate and sanitize the input:
By sanitization, we mean to ensure that the data arriving at an application are safe for interaction and the data leaving is also safe for consumption
There are three ways to ensure that your data is safe:
- Validation: This makes sure that the data that you have received is of the right kind. For example the field specifying a number should be an integer by using PHP’s is_numeric() function. In case the answer returns false, then you can get an error back to the browser asking for a valid integer.
- Sanitization: This helps to remove any harmful data like you may remove the quotes from an HTML attribute before it is sent to the browser. This involves checking so that there is nothing that is harmful in your PHP coding.
- Escaping: This selects any harmful data and makes it harmless. Like if someone has included a <script> tag in the code, then this can result in an XSS vulnerability. You can escape this by making its output as lt;script> where you can remove the greater and less than sign and make the data harmless.
Thus to conclude, it is very important to look out for any coding issues in your web applications. The above checklist will help you to write secure PHP codes for your applications.
Latest iOS Development Trends That Will Be Focused On for 2018
Developing an iOS application for a business is a complex job as you have to keep the latest trends in your mind to offer great and valuable features. The developers you hire has to be a pro and should be a perfect blend of skills and innovation so that your app represents its best before the visitors or users.
That is why, before you start with your iOS development project, a quick look at the latest trends will help you to build that perfect application that users are looking for.
A few days ago, Apple had its new operation system iOS 11.3 launched with a lot of improvements in the existing features and functionalities. While creating an iOS app, the developers should keep in mind that Apple is very particular about the app changes and updates and if they are not followed in the development phase, then it might become difficult to release the app on the App Store. When it comes to generating higher ROIs for business, people trust iOS apps and the reason behind it is that the apps are excelling in technology and also offers higher security than any Android app.
Artificial Intelligence and Siri:
Since Apple launched its personal assistant Siri, it has gained huge popularity worldwide. Siri has brought a great boost in AI and contextual learning as it has the capability to understand what the users are speaking and searching. It also offers a GPS that helps you to access the Citi Mobile App that offers service as the task manager.
Swift 4:
If you are looking for an iOS app development, then you must be aware of Swift, a programming language that is developed by Apple and supports the iOS and the Linux operating system.
It can be pre-compiled for tvOS and MacOS. Swift 4 is a powerful programming language that the developers will also find easy to learn and is popular for its robust security and scalability. It will make development of applications simpler and will also not consume more space in the device. Thus, in 2018, iOS app development will in fact become faster and securer with Swift 4.
Augmented reality and Arkit:
AR is an important area of development and with Apple releasing 11.3 recently, the focus is more on ARKit. It will help in developing 3D and virtual reality based mobile apps, that has gained popularity these days. ARKit will have complete support from the Amazon’s Sumerian application platform. And with this, many business organizations are showing their interest in it.
More user friendly:
Apple has launched Apple Pay and with this digital online mobile wallet, iOS users can easily make payments. It will support all the iOS devices like iPad, iPhone, Mac laptops and iOS watches. It is highly secured and makes your purchases hassle free. Now iOS developers can easily implement Apple Pay in their apps and make transactions easier for the users.
Apple HomeKit:
Apple HomeKit is an innovative creation of Apple and has been developed to solve the purpose of automation. This technology will allow the iOS developers to build applications that can get connected with other devices by using Apple HomeKit. This will bring a great change in the home automation procedure.
Thus to conclude, the iOS app industry is evolving a lot and with more and more development in technologies, the features and functionalities are also updated for better app performance and to attract the users.
Role of Database Management System in an Organization
Business organizations depend heavily on accurate data and information for proper functioning, updating and tracking. Within the organizations, employees use various data to complete their accounting works, calculate sales and create invoices for their customers. All these activities need an easy access to data through a computerized database, so that one can make use of the immense potential of the system and also address the challenges of the business.
It is only by collecting and updating accurate data that companies can use the information to attain their business goals in a more systematic manner.
DBMS plays an important role in a company and here in this blog, I will discuss with you its importance:
Easy data access:
Modern DBMS is based on programming languages that are called structured query language, which is used to access, delete or even update the data that are present in the tables. Whenever the users are in need to access the data, they can easily do it if there is a DBMS and they will also get the updated version of the data. Organized data helps to manage and enhance the abilities to correlate, report and generate a query of the collected information of the organization.
High accuracy and completion:
There are many tasks in an organization that needs to be completed with high accuracy and also within time. The waste of time throughout the company by individuals seeking or trying to derive accurate information is actually a great loss. This can be reduced with a centralized database, which is easily accessible by all and can also provide you with quick answers to questions that may be really difficult to gather manually.
No duplicate and useless data:
Employees of a company don’t want unnecessary data stored, which has to be sorted before further use. A good database offers a simple front-end that is easy to use by the users and offers structures that humans can understand without much difficulty. The UI makes it possible for the users to focus on their task without having to handle the intricacies of the database forms or links. A DBMS service provider will help you to keep your data well organized and make huge amounts of data more manageable by removing the duplicate and useless ones and offering the users only what they need to complete their job.
Automated reports:
Business organizations often look for automated processes that can help them to complete repetitive tasks that would involve a lot of time if done manually. DBMS helps to compile a wide array of information and makes it available for report generation that can be used to take crucial business decisions. DBMS helps to bring people and processes together and offers a consistency of spelling and syntax and also reduces much duplicated effort.
Data relationships:
DBMS programs allow different data tables to relate to each other easily and when a database contains different tables and there is a need to relate to each other, then the system helps to arrange the relationship between the two tables easily. This often helps the managers of the organization to check which salesperson has the highest sales and which products are selling the most.
“To conclude, it can be said that database management is an integral part of all organization and it helps to work in an efficient, collaborative and systematic manner”.
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