SANS/CWE Top 25 Programming Errors

Discusses the CWE/SANS Top 25 programming security errors—highlighting issues like improper input/output validation (e.g., CWE-20, CWE-116)—and argues that security is easier to design in than to retrofit. The author explains the practical difficulties of auditing and validating all inputs in large applications, warns against ad hoc "time of use" validation that creates inconsistent protection, and stresses that even if developers address these coding issues, many high-profile breaches stem from operational and human failures (weak admin passwords, insider data leaks, unencrypted backups, etc.).