When Should Security Compliance Become A Part Of Your QA Strategy?

Software testing is now of strategic value to app and product development. Enterprises are investing heavily in the best QA talent, devising a robust QA strategy and ensuring smooth QA execution. And why wouldn’t they- a strong QA strategy and implementation ensures a brilliant customer experience, a high-quality product, less downtime, minimal support costs, and better ROI.

But as QA strategies become more involved, enterprises expect them to cover more than just the testing of product features. QA is now playing a role in compliance. So much so, that compliance testing has become the latest requirement to be included in the QA strategy. End customers are asking that the confirmation of compliance with key certifications like SANS 20 be included in the product license agreements. Of course, this is because their own compliance requirements dictate that the products they use be so certified.

Security compliance- a part of your QA strategy

Modern development teams are moving to embrace accelerated and lean concepts such as DevOps, Agile, and continuous integration. And this must be supported by the QA strategy to ensure quality assurance, as well as security assurance.

Focusing on security compliance also helps in keeping up the company’s reputation and avoiding penalties and fines that arise due to noncompliance.

For example, the laws associated with the security and privacy of personal data such as PCI DSS, GDPR, and HIPAA are stringent and any violation can result in serious repercussions as well as hefty monetary fines.

According to a report by National Vulnerability Database (NVD) maintained by the U.S. National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST), 92% of all reported vulnerabilities are in the applications and not due to insecure networks. While conventional network security experts and associated teams with security auditors can help in preventing and handling the network vulnerabilities, it is, clearly, essential to involve the QA team to prevent issues arising in the application.

These vulnerabilities could be an error in the code that can be directly accessed by the hacker to gain access to the network or the system. Or, they could be unaddressed flaws and faults in the code or the architecture that could lead to systems or data being susceptible to attack. Security assurance is hence more than necessary, it is unavoidable.
The enterprise security strategy presumes that security managers and auditors will build on the base provided by the application QA team using their in-house compliance testing tools to combat all security vulnerabilities.

Why is Security Compliance Important?

Security compliance is crucial for several reasons:

1. Legal and Regulatory Requirements: Many industries are governed by strict regulations that mandate security and privacy standards, such as GDPR, HIPAA, and PCI DSS. Non-compliance can result in hefty fines and reputational damage.
2. Protecting Customer Data: Ensuring the security of customer data is paramount. Breaches can lead to loss of trust, financial losses, and legal consequences.
3. Reputation Management: Security breaches can damage a company’s reputation and erode customer trust. Implementing strong security measures helps maintain a positive image.
4. Risk Mitigation: Identifying and addressing security vulnerabilities early minimizes the risk of successful attacks.
5. Business Continuity: Security breaches can disrupt operations, leading to downtime, data loss, and financial setbacks. Compliance helps ensure uninterrupted business operations.
6. Competitive Advantage: Demonstrating compliance and robust security measures can differentiate your product or service in the market, attracting security-conscious customers.

When should security compliance become a part of the QA strategy?

But why fix something that is not broken? For products that have been around for a while and stood the test of time (and security vulnerabilities), is it necessary to involve security compliance as a part of sanity testing and regular QA strategy? And the answer is a big yes!

“Here’s the truth of it: Your customer-facing applications are being probed for weaknesses. Constantly. And they will continue to be probed as you introduce new features and functionality. Worse yet, malicious attackers are highly skilled, resourceful, and determined. And more often than not, we are leaving our applications open to attack.” That’s from, Amy DeMartine of Forrester

All products, released or in production, need to start baking in security compliance as a part of their QA strategy. This helps them stay relevant and compliant with SANS 20 critical security controls and incorporate 100+ ISO protocols in testing. This can help to not only identify the threats in existing systems but also to detect every possible security risk and help the developers mitigate these with appropriate fixes before it is too late.

Penetration testing by simulating attacks, security and vulnerability scanning, and security auditing are the key steps that need to now become a part of your QA strategy. The software security team must join hands with the QA team to conduct AST, making use of static and dynamic testing tools.

Security vulnerabilities to your product and its functionalities. These can also have a deeper impact. Being vulnerable is also a representation of your business as a whole, in the eyes of your users and your customers. In fact, Fortune 100 companies have suffered a material loss of intellectual property, trade secrets, and sensitive organizational data, thanks to the security vulnerabilities that went undetected or unaddressed.

What Are the Key Phases for Integration?

Integrating security compliance into your QA strategy involves several key phases:

1. Assessment: Evaluate regulatory requirements and industry standards applicable to your product. Identify potential security risks and vulnerabilities.
2. Planning: Develop a comprehensive strategy for incorporating security compliance into your QA process. Determine testing methodologies, tools, and resources required.
3. Testing: Perform security testing to identify vulnerabilities, including penetration testing, security scanning, and auditing. Ensure that your product adheres to security protocols and standards.
4. Remediation: Address identified vulnerabilities promptly. Collaborate with development teams to implement fixes and security enhancements.
5. Documentation: Maintain thorough documentation of security testing processes, findings, and remediation efforts. This documentation is essential for audits and compliance reporting.

What’s the Significance of Continuous Monitoring?

Continuous monitoring is crucial for maintaining security compliance:

1. Adapting to Changes: Security threats and compliance requirements evolve over time. Continuous monitoring allows you to adapt to new challenges and adjust your security measures accordingly.
2. Early Detection: Continuous monitoring helps identify security breaches and vulnerabilities in real-time, allowing for swift responses to mitigate potential damage.
3. Compliance Maintenance: Regular monitoring ensures ongoing adherence to security standards and regulatory requirements, reducing the risk of non-compliance.
4. Data Protection: Monitoring helps safeguard sensitive data by detecting unauthorized access or suspicious activities promptly.
5. Risk Management: By continuously monitoring security, you can proactively manage risks and make informed decisions to enhance your security posture.

How Can QA and Security Teams Collaborate Effectively?

Effective collaboration between QA and security teams is essential for a robust security compliance strategy:

1. Clear Communication: Maintain open and transparent communication channels between QA and security teams. Regular meetings and updates help align goals and expectations.
2. Shared Objectives: Both teams should understand their shared objective of ensuring a secure and compliant product. Collaborate to integrate security testing seamlessly into the QA process.
3. Early Involvement: Involve security experts early in the development lifecycle to identify potential vulnerabilities and security requirements before they become major issues.
4. Cross-Training: Promote cross-training between QA and security teams to enhance mutual understanding and promote a holistic approach to product security.
5. Tool Integration: Ensure that QA and security teams have access to appropriate tools for testing and monitoring. Integrating security testing tools into the QA toolkit can streamline the process.
6. Documentation Sharing: Share documentation, findings, and remediation plans between teams to ensure a cohesive understanding of security compliance efforts.
7. Collaborative Testing: Conduct joint testing sessions where QA and security teams work together to identify and address vulnerabilities.

The return of manual testing for security compliance

Security testing is different from quality testing, let there be no doubt about that. For performance and functional testing, the QA teams have to verify the performance against pre-described results, hence they cannot be perimeter-less. Security assurance, on the other hand, needs the QA team to proactively look for vulnerabilities that could lead to security mishaps and misuse.

And this is why it cannot be automated.

With automated testing now rapidly replacing manual testing, enterprises might feel the pull in opposite directions. Compliance testing is less amenable to be automated and it has to be executed with an understanding of and testing against several security protocols. This shines the spotlight on manual testing, yet again.

To summarize…

Remember, the security compliance journey starts with action – incorporate security compliance into your QA strategy today and secure a safer tomorrow.

In partnership with Forgeahead Solutions, let’s fortify your software development journey with robust security compliance. Don’t wait for vulnerabilities to strike – take proactive steps to safeguard your product’s integrity and user trust. Contact us today to seamlessly integrate security compliance into your QA strategy and ensure a future of secure, resilient, and successful software solutions. Your software’s security matters, and we’re here to help you navigate the path towards a safer and more trustworthy digital landscape.