How Secure Coding Training Can Save Your Budget

Budgeting can be a dreaded task when it comes to determining how invested your organization is in your application security. While some may perceive secure coding training as an expense, it's actually an investment that can save your organization money in the long run.  

In this article, we will delve into what secure coding training is and how it can potentially save you money by adopting it for your developers. 

What Is Secure Coding Training? 

Secure coding training is software development training that focuses on teaching developers how to write secure code that is less susceptible to cyberattacks. Secure coding aims to create software designed with security in mind rather than trying to patch vulnerabilities after they have been discovered. 

Secure coding training typically covers topics such as common software vulnerabilities, secure coding best practices, and how to use security tools and techniques to find and fix vulnerabilities in software. It may also cover specific programming languages and frameworks and how to write secure code in those contexts.   

Read The Article: What Is Secure Coding Training? 

Why Is Secure Coding Training Important? 

Secure coding training is essential for organizations prioritizing data security, particularly in finance, healthcare, and government industries. This training equips developers with the skills needed to minimize security risks and address vulnerabilities, including SQL injection and cross-site scripting.  

By investing in secure coding training, organizations can reduce the risk of security incidents, build customer trust, and establish a reputation for reliability. 

The Costs of Security Breaches 

It often takes up to 7 hours or more for a vulnerability to be detected, prioritized, and remediated – making your application a sitting duck. When your team learns of a vulnerability, you must act quickly to remediate the problem.  

Studies show that the average time to detect, prioritize, and remediate one vulnerability is 7 hours.   

Let's look at the calculations:  

• A team is faced with 5,000 vulnerabilities  
• They fix at least 30% of the vulnerabilities = 1,500 vulnerabilities to fix  
• 1,500 vulnerabilities @ 7 hours each = 10,500 hours of developer work  
• 10,500 hours of developer work @ $72/ hour* = $757,215  

The total average cost to remediate vulnerabilities is $757,215 annually. 

How Can Secure Coding Training Save Your Budget? 

Improve The Quality of Your Code 

Apart from ensuring the security of your application, learning how to write secure code can also lead to more reliable and efficient code from the start.  

When developers are trained in writing secure code, they also learn about the best practices for software development, such as using proper coding standards, documenting the code, and performing code reviews. These practices can improve code quality overall, saving you a considerable amount of money in terms of maintenance and support costs.  

Reduce The Cost of Fixing Security Vulnerabilities 

While preventing vulnerabilities is always key to secure code, you’re not going to avoid all mistakes. That’s where secure coding training is a valuable investment that can help organizations reduce the cost of fixing security vulnerabilities. 

A developer who has been trained in secure coding is more likely to be able to identify and fix vulnerabilities early in the development cycle. This is much cheaper than fixing vulnerabilities after the code has been released to production when the cost of fixing them can be much higher. 

Reduce The Risk of Data Breaches and Other Security Incidents 

In today's digital age, data breaches and security incidents have become increasingly common and can significantly impact organizations. These incidents can result in financial losses, damage to reputation, and loss of customer trust.  

It’s imperative for organizations to take proactive steps to prevent these incidents from occurring in the first place. One way to do this is by training developers to write secure code.  

By doing so, developers can identify and fix potential security vulnerabilities early on, reducing the risk of security incidents and preventing costly remediation efforts later. This training can also help developers stay up-to-date with the latest security best practices and regulations, ensuring that your organization is always compliant. 

How To Choose a Secure Coding Training Program for Your Team 

Choosing the right security training program for your team can actually save your business’ budget long-term. Look for a program that covers the latest security threats and vulnerabilities, and make sure it is engaging and effective.  

If you are looking to include secure coding training in your budget, contact our team today to lock in budgetary pricing for next year.