Security by Design Skill

Purpose

This skill integrates security into every phase of the CIA platform's software development lifecycle (SDLC). It ensures threats are identified and mitigated before code is written, following defense-in-depth principles aligned with Hack23 ISMS Secure Development Policy.

When to Use This Skill

Apply this skill when:

✅ Starting a new feature or user story
✅ Designing API endpoints or data flows
✅ Creating architecture or design documents
✅ Writing acceptance criteria for security stories
✅ Reviewing pull requests for security implications
✅ Planning sprint work involving sensitive data
✅ Conducting design reviews before implementation

Do NOT use for:

❌ Post-incident forensics (use incident-response skill)
❌ Runtime security monitoring (use aws-cloudwatch-monitoring)
❌ Code-level vulnerability scanning (use secure-code-review)

Security in SDLC Phases

SDLC Phase          Security Activity
│
├─ REQUIREMENTS
│  ├─ Identify security requirements (abuse cases)
│  ├─ Define data classification for new features
│  └─ Document compliance requirements (GDPR, NIS2)
│
├─ DESIGN
│  ├─ Threat model using STRIDE
│  ├─ Define trust boundaries
│  ├─ Select security controls
│  └─ Review architecture for defense in depth
│
├─ IMPLEMENTATION
│  ├─ Follow secure coding standards
│  ├─ Use approved libraries and frameworks
│  ├─ Implement input validation at boundaries
│  └─ Apply principle of least privilege
│
├─ TESTING
│  ├─ Security unit tests
│  ├─ SAST scanning (CodeQL, SonarCloud)
│  ├─ DAST scanning (ZAP)
│  └─ Dependency vulnerability check (OWASP)
│
├─ DEPLOYMENT
│  ├─ Security configuration review
│  ├─ Infrastructure hardening verification
│  ├─ Secrets management validation
│  └─ Monitoring and alerting setup
│
└─ MAINTENANCE
   ├─ Vulnerability patching cadence
   ├─ Security incident response
   ├─ Periodic threat model updates
   └─ Dependency update reviews

STRIDE Threat Modeling

Quick-Start Template for CIA Features

Feature: [Name]
Data Classification: [PUBLIC/INTERNAL/CONFIDENTIAL/RESTRICTED]
Trust Boundary: [User→App / App→DB / App→ExternalAPI]

┌─────────────┬──────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ STRIDE      │ Assessment                               │
├─────────────┼──────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Spoofing    │ Can an attacker impersonate a user?       │
│ Tampering   │ Can data be modified in transit/storage?  │
│ Repudiation │ Can actions be denied without proof?      │
│ Info Disc.  │ Can sensitive data leak?                  │
│ DoS         │ Can service be overwhelmed?               │
│ Elev. Priv. │ Can a user gain unauthorized access?      │
└─────────────┴──────────────────────────────────────────┘

CIA Platform Example: Politician Dashboard

Feature: Politician Risk Score Dashboard
Data Classification: INTERNAL
Trust Boundaries: Browser→Vaadin→Service→Database

Spoofing:
  Threat: Unauthenticated access to risk scores
  Control: Spring Security authentication required
  Code: @PreAuthorize("hasRole('USER')")

Tampering:
  Threat: Manipulation of risk score algorithm inputs
  Control: Read-only database transactions for analysis
  Code: @Transactional(readOnly = true)

Repudiation:
  Threat: User denies viewing sensitive risk data
  Control: Audit logging of all dashboard access
  Code: AuditService.logAccess(userId, "RISK_DASHBOARD")

Information Disclosure:
  Threat: Risk scores leaked to unauthorized users
  Control: Role-based access, no client-side caching
  Code: Cache-Control: no-store, Pragma: no-cache

Denial of Service:
  Threat: Complex queries overloading database
  Control: Query timeout, connection pool limits
  Code: spring.datasource.hikari.connectionTimeout=30000

Elevation of Privilege:
  Threat: Regular user accessing admin risk controls
  Control: Method-level security annotations
  Code: @Secured("ROLE_ADMIN")

Defense in Depth Layers

Layer 1: NETWORK
├─ AWS VPC with private subnets
├─ Security groups (least privilege)
├─ WAF rules for common attacks
└─ DDoS protection (AWS Shield)

Layer 2: APPLICATION
├─ Spring Security filter chain
├─ CSRF protection enabled
├─ Content Security Policy headers
└─ Rate limiting per client

Layer 3: DATA
├─ Input validation at every boundary
├─ Parameterized queries (JPA/Hibernate)
├─ Output encoding (Vaadin auto-escapes)
└─ Encryption at rest (AES-256, KMS)

Layer 4: IDENTITY
├─ Strong authentication (bcrypt, cost 12)
├─ Role-based access control (RBAC)
├─ Session management (secure cookies)
└─ Principle of least privilege

Layer 5: MONITORING
├─ Security event logging (CloudWatch)
├─ Intrusion detection (GuardDuty)
├─ Vulnerability scanning (CodeQL, OWASP)
└─ Incident response procedures

Security Controls Checklist

For Every New Feature

Pre-Implementation:
□ Threat model completed (STRIDE)
□ Data classification assigned
□ Security requirements documented
□ Trust boundaries identified

During Implementation:
□ Input validation at all entry points
□ Output encoding for all user-displayed data
□ Authentication required for protected resources
□ Authorization checks at service layer
□ Parameterized queries for database access
□ Secrets managed via environment variables
□ Error messages don't leak internal details
□ Logging includes security-relevant events

Post-Implementation:
□ CodeQL scan passes with no high/critical findings
□ OWASP dependency check passes
□ Security unit tests written and passing
□ Code review with security focus completed

Secure Defaults

// ✅ Spring Security configuration with secure defaults
@Configuration
@EnableWebSecurity
public class SecurityConfig {

    @Bean
    public SecurityFilterChain filterChain(HttpSecurity http) throws Exception {
        http
            .headers(headers -> headers
                .contentSecurityPolicy(csp -> csp
                    .policyDirectives("default-src 'self'"))
                .frameOptions(frame -> frame.deny())
                .httpStrictTransportSecurity(hsts -> hsts
                    .maxAgeInSeconds(31536000)
                    .includeSubDomains(true)))
            .sessionManagement(session -> session
                .sessionCreationPolicy(SessionCreationPolicy.IF_REQUIRED)
                .maximumSessions(1))
            .csrf(csrf -> csrf.csrfTokenRepository(
                CookieCsrfTokenRepository.withHttpOnlyFalse()));
        return http.build();
    }
}

ISMS Alignment

Control	Requirement	Security-by-Design Activity
ISO 27001 A.8.25	Secure development lifecycle	STRIDE per feature
ISO 27001 A.8.26	Application security requirements	Security user stories
ISO 27001 A.8.28	Secure coding	Approved coding patterns
NIST CSF PR.DS	Data security	Encryption by default
CIS Control 16	Application software security	SAST/DAST in pipeline
NIS2 Art. 21	Cybersecurity risk management	Threat modeling

security-by-design