Each day seems to bring new threats to a business' computer systems. Businesses with websites that handle credit card data are favorite targets of hackers or disgruntled employees. Protecting customer credit card information is critical to earning trust and maintaining revenue. In the case of a security breach, customers must be notified, and that cost is high, not only in dollars, but also in company reputation. In addition, companies may need to comply with standards established by the payment card company for which they process transactions. Computer security testing services can help companies build, deliver and maintain applications and databases that resist hacking, reduce the risk of exposing credit card data and demonstrate compliance with standards.
To build more secure applications, developers should be aware of the various types of threats and attacks, and whenever possible, add defenses to their systems. Testing during the development phase can help identify possible areas of exposure so they can be addressed early on. It is also less expensive to build application security from the start, rather than needing to rework an application when it is almost completed.
One of the standard tools used in computer security testing is called penetration testing. Penetration testing tools emulate the system attack methods a hacker might use. The testing tools automate some of these processes, resulting in faster and more effective tests. Because this testing can disable a system, it should be conducted with care when targeting production systems. Effective testing can also be done on a development environment that accurately the production systems.
Even when these tools are used, there could still be value in conducting a source code review. Through the review process, security issues can be identified across the entire code base and mitigated more quickly as specific faulty lines of code are identified. Because of the size and complexity of most applications, code reviews also use automated tools to identify common vulnerabilities.
Databases, those all-important storehouses of information, such as customer names and credit card numbers, should also undergo security testing. Databases can be configured to take advantage of various information security layers and types, such as access control, authentication and encryption.
An important piece in securing the database is real-time monitoring. Network and host-based intrusion detection systems can identify and warn of suspicious traffic. The results can be analyzed for policy breaches and known exploits. Monitoring can also establish baselines of normal patterns of use, which can be compared to abnormal, potentially suspicious activity. This suspicious user can then be "quarantined."
Attacks against websites that transact credit card payments are a fact of life. A security breach costs the company loss of money and reputation. Computer security testing services, source code reviews and database and security event monitoring are all security controls that can help protect against breaches, while demonstrating compliance to standards.
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