Poll: Does your startup try to write secure software?

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=394661

by Haskell • 18 years ago

5 16 18 years ago

news.ycombinator.com

lincolnq• 18 years ago

Security is a high priority for us (2 people). We are careful to write secure code, and we discuss security specifically and do code reviews for any risky parts. This process isn't formalized, but we don't just trust ourselves -- we also expect each other to find any problems we've missed. This doesn't seem to fit into any of your responses.

(If you're going to make a poll, I would recommend choosing answers which don't presuppose so much)

Haskell8• 18 years ago

You can interpret formal process as systematic process.

The logic for each answer is this:

Answer 2. If you claim to care about security, you should understand the security implications of what you are doing and you are an expert. You can take care of it on your own.

A 1. If you care about security and you aren't an expert, then you don't really understand all security implications of what you are doing and should be basing your judgment on the recommendations of those that do using a systematic process created by experts. You don't need to hire a consultant to do it. You can just buy a few books or read it for free in the Internet.

A 3. If you care about secure software but aren't an expert nor use a systematic process created by experts, then you aren't checking all security implications of what you are doing, but instead checking only for a few generally know flaws.

A 4, 5, 6. You don't understand the security implications of what you are doing and refuses to take the recommendations of those that do.

tptacek7• 18 years ago

Why would you spend a lot of time writing secure code for a news recommendation site?

Haskell8• 18 years ago

That is why I have placed that introduction.

If this news recommendation site is being constantly hacked to the point in which it has more malware than a porn site, then the developer should consider making it more secure. Otherwise users would not visit it anymore, unless the owner starts to place some hot picures to serve together with the exploits.

tptacek7• 18 years ago

I'm eager to see what people here have to say about this poll, but it's so badly constructed that I'm not hopeful about the quality of the results. I've thought about posting a similar poll, but it would be self-serving.

Haskell8• 18 years ago

Why do you think it is badly constructed?

tptacek7• 18 years ago

It's too detailed and it has an agenda.

Haskell8• 18 years ago

Feel free to post your own Poll.

If you do, I can ask the moderator to delete this one.

Poll: Does your startup try to write secure software?

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