Secure Software Development Policy
1. Purpose
The purpose of this Secure Software Development Policy is to establish security requirements
and best practices for software development within the Company. This policy ensures that
security is integrated into all stages of the Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC) and that
development pipelines are protected against threats.
2. Scope
This policy applies to all software development activities, including in-house development,
outsourced projects, and third-party integrations. It encompasses all phases of the SDLC, from
design to deployment and maintenance.
3. Secure Development Lifecycle (SDLC) Requirements
● Security must be considered at every stage of the SDLC, including design, development,
testing, deployment, and maintenance.
● Threat modeling must be conducted during the design phase to identify and mitigate
potential vulnerabilities.
● Secure coding standards must be followed based on industry best practices (e.g.,
OWASP, NIST, ISO 27001).
● Code reviews must include security assessments to detect vulnerabilities before merging
code.
● Third-party dependencies must be vetted for security risks and updated regularly.
4. Security in Development Pipelines
● All code must be stored in a version control system with restricted access and audit
logging enabled.
● Automated security scanning tools must be integrated into Continuous
Integration/Continuous Deployment (CI/CD) pipelines to detect vulnerabilities early.
● Secrets and credentials must not be stored in source code and must be managed using
secure vaults.
● Access to CI/CD environments must be restricted based on the principle of least
privilege.
● Security testing (e.g., static application security testing (SAST), dynamic application
security testing (DAST), and dependency scanning) must be performed regularly.
5. Secure Deployment and Maintenance
● Security patches and updates must be applied to production environments promptly.
● Configuration management practices must be followed to ensure secure infrastructure
and application settings.
● Monitoring and logging must be enabled for deployed applications to detect security
incidents in real time.
● Incident response procedures must be in place to address security breaches and
vulnerabilities in deployed software.
6. Roles and Responsibilities
● Development Teams: Implement secure coding practices and conduct security-focused
code reviews.
● Security Team: Provide guidance on secure development practices and conduct
security assessments.
● DevOps & Infrastructure Teams: Ensure security controls are enforced in development
pipelines and production environments.
● Third-Party Developers & Vendors: Adhere to the Company’s secure software
development standards when contributing code.
7. Compliance and Enforcement
● Regular security training must be conducted for developers on secure coding practices.
● Security audits must be performed to ensure compliance with this policy.
● Non-compliance with this policy may result in restricted access to development
environments or disciplinary action.
8. Policy Review and Updates
This policy must be reviewed annually or as necessary to address emerging threats, industry
standards, and regulatory changes.
