Secure Coding

Introduction

Secure coding is a fundamental discipline for building resilient Windows applications. This guide outlines the most critical threats and provides actionable practices to protect your code from exploitation.

Common Vulnerabilities

  • Buffer Overflows – Occur when data exceeds allocated memory, allowing arbitrary code execution.
  • Use‑After‑Free – Accessing memory after it has been released.
  • Improper Input Validation – Leads to injection attacks such as SQL, command, and script injection.
  • Insecure Cryptography – Using weak algorithms or mismanaging keys.
  • Privilege Escalation – Exploiting improper permission checks.

Secure Coding Practices

  1. Validate All Input

    Never trust data from users, files, or network. Use whitelisting and size checks.

    if (!IsValidUserName(name)) {
    throw new ArgumentException("Invalid user name");
}
  2. Prefer Safe Functions

    Use StringCchCopy over strcpy, and SecureZeroMemory to clear secrets.

  3. Apply the Principle of Least Privilege

    Run components with only the permissions they need.

  4. Use Strong Cryptography

    Leverage CNG APIs with AES‑256 and SHA‑256.

  5. Employ Code Analysis Tools

    Integrate MSVC /analyze, Coverity, or SonarQube into CI pipelines.

Resources