Secure Development Policy
Document Version: 1.0
Last Reviewed: July 19, 2025
Approved By: CISO
Applies To: All Development Teams, Product Managers, QA, DevOps
1. Purpose
This policy establishes the requirements for secure software development practices at [Your Organization] to ensure that information security is integrated throughout the software development lifecycle (SDLC). It supports ISO/IEC 27001 Annex A.14 controls to reduce vulnerabilities and ensure secure design, development, and deployment.
2. Scope
This policy applies to all in-house developed software, APIs, mobile apps, scripts, automation code, infrastructure-as-code (IaC), and configuration templates developed, maintained, or deployed by the organization, including third-party developers or contractors.
3. Policy Requirements
3.1 Secure Development Lifecycle (SDLC)
- All software development must follow a defined and documented SDLC that includes security activities at each phase (requirements, design, development, testing, deployment, and maintenance).
- Security checkpoints must be integrated into CI/CD pipelines where applicable.
3.2 Security Requirements
- Security requirements must be defined and documented during the requirements phase.
- Input validation, output encoding, authentication, authorization, cryptography, and secure error handling must be addressed explicitly in the design.
3.3 Secure Coding Practices
- Developers must adhere to secure coding standards (e.g., OWASP Secure Coding Guidelines).
- Static and dynamic code analysis must be performed regularly.
- High and critical severity findings must be remediated before release.
3.4 Threat Modeling and Risk Assessment
- Threat modeling must be conducted for new applications or significant changes.
- Risk assessments must be documented and reviewed by the security team.
3.5 Code Reviews and Testing
- Peer code reviews are mandatory before merging changes into protected branches.
- Security testing (e.g., SAST, DAST, SCA) must be conducted as part of automated and manual QA.
- Penetration testing must be conducted for critical systems prior to production release.
3.6 Use of Third-Party Components
- Only approved and actively maintained open-source components and libraries may be used.
- Software Composition Analysis (SCA) tools must be used to detect vulnerabilities in third-party dependencies.
3.7 Secure Configuration and Secrets Management
- Application secrets, API keys, and credentials must not be hardcoded or stored in source code.
- Secrets must be managed using an approved secrets management solution (e.g., HashiCorp Vault, AWS Secrets Manager).
3.8 Environment Segregation
- Development, testing, and production environments must be segregated.
- Data used in development and testing must be anonymized or masked if derived from production.
3.9 Developer Training
- All developers must undergo annual secure development training and awareness.
- Training must include OWASP Top 10, secure coding practices, and organization-specific threat scenarios.
4. Roles and Responsibilities
| Role | Responsibility |
|---|---|
| Development Team | Implement secure coding practices and conduct peer reviews. |
| Security Team | Define secure coding standards, conduct security assessments, provide guidance. |
| DevOps | Enforce security checks in CI/CD. |
| QA Team | Include security tests in QA cycles. |
| Management | Ensure resources and training for secure development. |
5. Compliance and Exceptions
- Compliance with this policy is mandatory.
- Exceptions must be documented, approved by the CISO, and include a mitigation plan.
6. References
- ISO/IEC 27001:2022 – Annex A.14 (Secure Development)
- OWASP Secure Coding Practices
- NIST SP 800-218: Secure Software Development Framework (SSDF)