The OWASP Top 10 identifies the most critical web application security risks. Understanding and defending against these vulnerabilities is essential for every web developer.
Injection attacks (SQL injection, NoSQL injection, command injection): never construct queries from user input directly. Use parameterized queries, ORMs (Prisma, Drizzle), and input validation for all user-supplied data.
Cross-Site Scripting (XSS): malicious scripts injected into web pages via user input. React's JSX escapes content by default, but dangerouslySetInnerHTML, href attributes, and server-rendered HTML require careful sanitization.
Broken Access Control: users accessing resources they should not. Implement authorization checks on every API endpoint, not just the frontend. Verify ownership of resources in database queries, not just authentication.
Security Misconfiguration: default credentials, unnecessary features enabled, verbose error messages in production, and missing security headers. Use security header middleware (helmet.js) and audit configurations regularly.
Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF): malicious sites triggering actions on authenticated sessions. Implement CSRF tokens for state-changing requests. SameSite cookie attribute provides additional protection.
Server-Side Request Forgery (SSRF): attackers manipulating server-side requests to access internal resources. Validate and restrict URLs that the server can request. Block requests to internal IP ranges.
Sensitive Data Exposure: storing or transmitting sensitive data without encryption. Enforce HTTPS everywhere, encrypt data at rest, hash passwords with bcrypt/Argon2, and minimize sensitive data collection.
Content Security Policy (CSP): restrict which scripts, styles, and resources can load on your pages. CSP prevents XSS and data injection attacks. Start with report-only mode and tighten policies gradually.
Dependency vulnerabilities: regularly audit npm dependencies with npm audit or Snyk. Automated dependency updates (Renovate, Dependabot) keep packages current. Known vulnerabilities in dependencies are a common attack vector.
Security testing: integrate SAST (static analysis) into CI/CD pipelines. Use DAST (dynamic analysis) tools like OWASP ZAP for runtime testing. Conduct penetration testing annually for critical applications.
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