NEWS

July 21, 2025

by Tega Akuruli

• #cybersecurity
• #owasp

Understanding OWASP Top 10 Security List 

Security vulnerabilities pose serious risks to software systems, users, and organizations. That’s where the OWASP Top 10 comes in, a regularly updated list of the most critical web application security risks curated by the Open Worldwide Application Security Project (OWASP). It’s a go-to resource for developers, DevOps teams, and cybersecurity professionals. 

In this guide, we’ll break down each OWASP Top 10 vulnerability, explain real-world examples, and offer actionable mitigation strategies.  

Why the OWASP Top 10 Matters   

• Industry Standard: Auditors and compliance bodies like ISO and PCI-DSS reference it.
• Awareness: It helps teams focus on the most damaging and common security threats.
• Prevention: It guides developers in writing secure code from the ground up. 

The 2021 OWASP Top 10 (Latest)   

1. Broken Access Control  

Improper access restrictions let attackers bypass permissions, gaining unauthorized access to data or functions. 

• Example: A user accessing /admin routes without admin rights.
• Mitigation: Enforce least privilege, deny by default, validate access on the server side. 

2. Cryptographic Failures  

Weak or missing encryption can expose sensitive data like passwords, credit cards, or personal info. 

• Example: Storing passwords in plain text.
• Mitigation: Use strong, vetted encryption libraries (e.g., bcrypt for passwords, TLS for data in transit). 

3. Injection  

This happens when untrusted input is sent to a command or query interpreter (e.g., SQL, NoSQL, OS commands). 

• Example: SQL Injection using ‘ OR 1=1 –.
• Mitigation: Use parameterized queries and ORM libraries. Never concatenate raw input. 

4. Insecure Design

Applications that lack secure architecture, threat modeling, and design principles are vulnerable by design. 

• Example: A form that does not validate input types at all.
• Mitigation: Apply Secure by Design principles. Conduct threat modeling during planning. 

5. Security Misconfiguration  

Default credentials, open ports, exposed error messages, and outdated libraries fall into this category. 

• Example: Public S3 bucket with sensitive files.
• Mitigation: Harden deployments, disable unnecessary services, and use automated config tools like Ansible or Terraform. 

6. Vulnerable and Outdated Components  

Using libraries or frameworks with known vulnerabilities can lead to compromise. 

• Example: Using jQuery 1.x or Log4j with remote code execution bugs.
• Mitigation: Use dependency scanners (e.g., Snyk, npm audit) and update packages frequently. 

7. Identification and Authentication Failures

Weak authentication flows allow attackers to impersonate users or hijack sessions. 

• Example: Passwords with no rate-limiting on login.
• Mitigation: Use MFA, enforce password strength, and implement secure session management. 

8. Software and Data Integrity Failures  

Exploiting insecure CI/CD pipelines or loading libraries from untrusted sources. 

• Example: Updating a package from a compromised GitHub repository.
• Mitigation: Verify integrity with hashes or digital signatures, and secure CI/CD pipelines. 

9. Security Logging and Monitoring Failures 

Lack of proper logging, detection, and alerts allows breaches to go unnoticed. 

• Example: No logging of failed login attempts.
• Mitigation: Implement centralized logging with tools like ELK Stack, Prometheus + Grafana, or Sentry. 

10. Server-Side Request Forgery (SSRF)  

An attacker tricks the server into making unintended requests to internal or external services. 

• Example: Uploading an image from http://127.0.0.1/admin.
• Mitigation: Validate all URLs, use allowlists, and block internal IP ranges. 

Real-World Breaches Due to OWASP Failures   

• Equifax Breach (2017): This happened because of a vulnerable Apache Struts library (item #6).
• Facebook (2019): Unprotected tokens in URLs allowed account takeover (item #1, #7). 

How to Secure Your Application   

• Secure Coding Training: Make OWASP part of your dev onboarding.
• Threat Modeling Sessions: Use tools like STRIDE to anticipate attacks.
• DevSecOps Integration: Automate security in CI/CD workflows.
• Security Testing: Regularly run DAST, SAST, and penetration tests. 
• Use Security Linters and Scanners (ESLint security plugin, Snyk, OWASP Dependency Check).

The OWASP Top 10 isn’t just a checklist; it’s a foundation for a security culture. As a developer, architect, or team lead, embedding these principles from design through deployment is essential. You don’t just protect systems; you protect real people’s data, privacy, and trust.