Category: 101

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101

Top 10 Memorable Women in Tech

Reading Time: 3 minutes

March is Women’s History Month, and it’s an opportunity to celebrate and recognize the many contributions made by women throughout history. Women have shaped the development of technology and other fields and led innovation. Celebrating these achievements honors the women who led the way and inspired future generations. We want to take a moment and recognize ten women who have made significant contributions to the world of technology.

 

1. Grace Hopper

Grace Hopper was a computer scientist and Navy rear admiral credited with developing the first compiler, which translates human-readable code into machine language. Hopper’s work laid the foundation for modern programming languages, and she is known for popularizing the term “debugging.”

2. Radia Perlman

Radia Perlman is a computer scientist who invented the spanning tree protocol (STP), which is used to prevent loops in network topologies. Her work on STP paved the way for modern computer networking, and she has been awarded numerous honors for her contributions to the field.


3. Reshma Saujani

Reshma Saujani is the founder of Girls Who Code. This nonprofit organization aims to close the gender gap in technology by inspiring and educating girls to pursue careers in tech. Saujani is also a former political candidate and author of the book “Brave, Not Perfect.”


4. Katherine Johnson

Katherine Johnson was a mathematician and NASA researcher whose work on orbital mechanics was crucial to the success of the early U.S. space program. Johnson’s story was popularized in the book and movie “Hidden Figures,” which tells the story of the African-American women who worked at NASA during the Space Race.


5. Tracy Chou

Tracy Chou is a software engineer and diversity advocate who has worked at companies like Pinterest and the U.S. Digital Service. Chou is known for her advocacy work around diversity in tech and for co-founding Project Include, an organization that promotes diversity and inclusion in the tech industry.

6. Sheryl Sandberg

Sheryl Sandberg is the former Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Facebook and the author of the smash-hit book “Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead.” Sandberg has been an advocate for women’s rights and empowerment in the workplace, and she has been named one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world.


7. Ada Lovelace

Ada Lovelace was a mathematician and writer who is often credited with writing the first computer program for Charles Babbage’s analytical engine. Lovelace’s work helped to pave the way for modern computing, and she is often referred to as the “first computer programmer.”


8. Radhika Nagpal

Radhika Nagpal is a computer scientist who is known for her work in robotics and artificial intelligence. Nagpal has developed several innovative robots, including a swarm of robots that can work together to perform complex tasks.

9. Fei-Fei Li

Fei-Fei Li is a computer scientist and artificial intelligence expert who is known for her work in computer vision. Li has developed several innovative technologies, including ImageNet, a large-scale visual recognition database that has been used to train artificial intelligence systems.


10. Megan Smith

Megan Smith is a former Vice President at Google and the former Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of the United States. Smith has been an advocate for diversity and inclusion in the tech industry, and she has worked to promote STEM education and entrepreneurship.


 

Celebrate the Achievements of Women in Tech During Women’s History Month

Women’s History Month is a time to celebrate the accomplishments and contributions of women in all areas of life, including technology. These are just a few examples of the many women in technology whose achievements deserve recognition. We at PreEmptive are excited to support future generations of women who continue to break barriers and make a difference in the world!

 

 

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101

Hacker Horror Stories to Frighten Dev Teams This Halloween

Cybersecurity Month: Hacker Horror Stories

Reading Time: 4 minutesHalloween is a time for ghosts, ghouls, and other frightening things. But ask any cybersecurity professional if they’re more scared of hockey masks and chainsaws or hackers and malware, and most will take their chances with the slashers. Truly, few things are more terrifying than when data security is compromised. 

Customer information, reputation, credibility, the outlook for the future — all of those things come into question when hackers and attackers infiltrate. It’s the thing of nightmares and, unfortunately, it happens more often than you think.

In fact, some estimates place the total at 109 million accounts that were breached in the third quarter of 2022 alone. That’s a 70% jump over the previous quarter. Yikes! And while no breach is minor, sometimes the magnitude of the breach, who it affects, and the costs and outcomes are especially jaw-dropping.

So to finish out Cybersecurity Awareness Month, let’s look at a few especially terrifying hacker horror stories that are sure to spook you!

 

Hackers Breach the Red Cross

It’s bad enough when hackers target businesses, but something about going after the charitable organizations that help people seems especially egregious. That happened in January of this year when hackers attacked servers operated by the Red Cross, which contained data about Restoring Family Links services, which works to reconnect people separated by war, migration, and violence. The personal information of a half million people was exposed.

 

 

Disgruntled Employee Goes After Cash App

It’s one thing when hacks and attacks come from the outside – those are to be expected. But when a person within an organization betrays their position to compromise security? That type of inside job is hard to protect against. Cash App found out the hard way in April this year when a former employee breached data containing customer names, stock information, account numbers, and portfolio information, along with a lot of other sensitive financial information. Eight million customers had to be notified about the occurrence!

Russia’s Warfare Has Cyber Element

Few things are more horrific than war. And the conflict that’s on everyone’s mind is what’s going on in Ukraine. The violence on the ground is bad enough, but Russian hackers have also taken to launching cyber attacks against the power grid in Ukraine, nuclear facilities, and a lot more.

 

Personal Health Information Leaked

Australia has had an especially difficult 2022 when it comes to cyber attacks, and many organizations have found themselves in compromising situations. Among the worst was when the personal health information of almost a quarter million people was leaked. In this case, not only were clients put at risk, but the company itself, Australian Clinical Labs Ltd., saw its share price fall as a result.

Hackers Hit the Bar

Having a glass of wine (in moderation) is a commonly practiced way to temporarily forget about problems like data breaches and security leaks. Well, not for customers of iDealwine. The online wine merchant just recently reported that they’d been the victim of a data breach that has potentially exposed the information of every single one of their customers.

Former Uber Exec Covered Up Data Breach

Imagine facing nearly a decade in federal prison for a hack you didn’t even commit. That’s what happened when former Uber Chief Security Officer Joseph Sullivan was found guilty in federal court of not disclosing a 2016 breach of customer and driver records to regulators and attempting to cover up the incident. He is looking at a possible maximum of five years in prison for the obstruction charge, and a maximum of three years for the other charge. It doesn’t get much worse than that.

 

PreEmptive Protects Applications From Hackers

 

Maintaining data security in today’s world requires a comprehensive approach and constant vigilance. No single habit does it all, nor is sometimes often enough. Whether it’s simply regularly changing your passwords and practicing good password hygiene, or implementing a full-fledged, enterprise-level security program.

When it comes to helping software developers create secure products, PreEmptive is a trusted global leader of protection tools for Desktop, Mobile, Cloud, and Internet of Things (IoT) applications. We help organizations make their applications more resistant and resilient to hacking and tampering so that protecting intellectual property, sensitive data, and revenue is achievable.

Want to learn more about our products and if they’re right for you? Contact us for a complimentary security consultation.

 

 

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101

How Important Is CI/CD in DevSecOps?

Reading Time: 4 minutes

There is no doubt that devsecops has become a critical component of application development and security. By integrating devops and security practices, devsecops can help organizations speed up their application delivery while ensuring that they build security into their process. Devsecops is defined as a set of practices that combine development and operations teams with security teams to secure the application development process from the beginning.

One of the critical components of devsecops is continuous integration/continuous delivery (CI/CD). CI/CD helps organizations  automate the application delivery process, from code development to product deployment. This can help organizations speed up the delivery of new features and fixes while reducing the risk of errors and security vulnerabilities.

This article will look at the importance of CI/CD in devsecops and things to watch out for in application development. It will also highlight reasons why developers should use CI/CD in devsecops, and how CI/CD can help organizations improve their applications’ security.

Why CI/CD Is Useful in DevSecOps?

CI/CD is a process that helps developers quickly build and test code changes, making it easier to integrate new features into applications. CI/CD is vital in devsecops because it helps organizations automate the application development process, from code development to product deployment.

The process also creates a feedback loop between developers and operations teams, helping them to identify and fix problems quickly. The ability to rapidly resolve problems helps reduce the chance of business-critical systems going down and can lead to improved customer satisfaction.

The overall process helps improve the quality of the code and speed up delivery times, making it an essential part of devsecops. There are three main reasons why CI/CD is so useful in devsecops:

  1. It helps organizations automate the application delivery process.
  2. It helps organizations improve the quality of their code.
  3. It helps organizations reduce the risk of errors and security vulnerabilities.

Automate the Application Delivery Process

One of the most significant benefits of CI/CD is that it helps organizations automate the application delivery process. By automating the process, organizations can save time and effort that would otherwise be spent on manual tasks. Automation can also help organizations improve the consistency and quality of their code and reduce the risk of errors and security vulnerabilities.

Automation further provides an opportunity for standardizing the development process across the organization, making it easier for developers to work together on code changes. By merging the testing and  deployment processes into a single automated pipeline, it is easier to manage and monitor the application development process.

Improve Code Quality 

Another significant benefit of CI/CD is that it helps organizations improve the  quality of their code. By  automating the testing and delivery process, organizations can ensure that their code is of a high quality before deploying it. Improving the quality leads to the development of better products and eventually better customer satisfaction.

High-quality code becomes easier to maintain and scale as the product evolves. The use of  in-app protection tools offered by PreEmptive can further secure the code base.

Reduce the Risk of Errors and Security Vulnerabilities

Finally, CI/CD can help organizations reduce the risk of errors and security vulnerabilities. Organizations can ensure that their code is tested and deployed quickly before any security vulnerabilities can be exploited. The use of devsecops tools and techniques can further help organizations secure their code and reduce the risk of errors. One such tool is static code analysis, which can help organizations identify and fix security vulnerabilities in their code before it is deployed. 

The use of  in-app protection tools can also help secure the code and reduce the risk of errors.  PreEmptive offers a variety of protection tools on a variety of platforms. The tools assist in protecting against intellectual property theft and data breaches while identifying potential attack vectors. PreEmptive protection tools are available for .NET, Java, and iOS. The tools apply a layered approach to security that includes code signing, tamper resistance, string encryption, and app-hardening.

Why Developers Should Use CI/CD in DevSecOps?

As devsecops teams have gained prominence in recent years, so has the need for better tools to help manage the security of code bases. CI/CD is one of the most important security tools in this space.

One of the most significant challenges in devsecops is that developers are often working on code that needs to be released quickly, which can lead to security vulnerabilities being introduced. CI/CD can help mitigate this risk by automating the process of checking the code for errors and potential vulnerabilities before it is released.

CI/CD helps developers  prioritize security, from one-off assessments to daily or weekly tests that are built into the development process. By automating these tasks, devsecops teams can save a significant amount of time that would otherwise be spent on manual code reviews.

What to Watch Out For!

While CI/CD can help organizations improve the security of their applications, there are a few things to watch out for. First, it is important for developers to ensure that their CI/CD pipeline is configured correctly. Otherwise, they may inadvertently introduce new security vulnerabilities into their code. Second, it is important to ensure that their code is properly tested before it is deployed. 

Thorough testing of the code before deployment is essential in detecting  security vulnerabilities. Finally, it is crucial for developers to monitor their CI/CD pipeline for any signs of abuse. If there’s suspicion that the CI/CD pipeline is being abused, it is vital to take action to secure it. PreEmptive can help developers secure their CI/CD pipeline and prevent abuse. 

Conclusion

In conclusion, CI/CD is a critical part of any devsecops strategy.  PreEmptive offers high-quality, highly flexible,  smart application protection for a wide variety of industries. PreEmptive helps protect and secure applications for a broad range of platforms, including .NET, Java, Android, JavaScript, and iOS. 

PreEmptive’s solutions are backed by a world-class support team, which is available 24/7 to help developers get up and running quickly.  Review the wide range of products and services today, or  contact the team to learn more about how PreEmptive can help developers achieve their security goals.

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101

Budgeting for DevSecOps: Key Points To Keep in Mind In Cybersecurity

Budgeting for DevSecOps: Key Points To Keep in Mind In Cybersecurity
Reading Time: 5 minutes

Cybersecurity is one of the areas of business that should never be ignored. Experts expect that cyberattacks will cost the world an estimated $10.5 trillion dollars in losses by 2025, making it an urgent priority for companies across every sector to get right. Not only can cyberattacks have a devastating impact on a company’s bottom line by leading to data breaches and other problems, they can also damage an organization’s reputation beyond repair. If a business fails to take the necessary time to address cybersecurity needs in its budget, it takes a significant risk that could cost them significantly if something goes wrong. 

Knowing how to budget for cybersecurity isn’t always easy. There’s more that goes into it than just buying software and hardware. Training staff and developing a culture of security within an organization must also be included.

Read on to find out how companies can make sure their cybersecurity budget meets their needs.

Know the Threat Landscape

Knowing the threat landscape is about knowing one’s enemy. Understanding what types of attacks are being used and by whom can help businesses better plan their security strategy. As malware authors continually evolve their approach, it’s crucial to stay informed about new threats and how they are being used.

In practical terms, that means:

  • Proactively monitoring the latest cyber attacks, including those identified by researchers at leading cybersecurity firms
  • Learning about new hacking and attack methods and vulnerabilities as soon as possible after their discovery
  • Maintaining up-to-date cyber protection on all systems with an internet connection

Companies should develop an acute awareness of the different attack vectors and vulnerabilities likely to affect their organization. Good managers will place themselves in the mind of an attacker and war game ways to overcome their own defenses. Would they implant Trojan viruses, or could they instead target one of the system administrators with phishing emails?

The conclusions that emerge will determine where and how the budget should be prioritized.

Don’t Just Think of One Single Network Perimeter

The best defense is a good offense, and this is especially true when it comes to cybersecurity. Businesses need to be proactive. The hackers are always working on newer, more advanced methods of attack, so defenders should plan for the future as a whole, not just threat parameters across one single network. They need a multilayered approach that will keep their network protected from threats internal and external alike.

Many breaches happen because companies are far too complacent with their cybersecurity measures. They rely too much on one single aspect of DevSecOps. But cyber attackers are getting smarter by the day: Defenders need to be flexible and adaptive.

Avoid Going Overboard

The point here is that cybersecurity budgets, like any other budget, should be managed with care. In determining the right amount to spend on cybersecurity in your organization, think about:

  • Risk Assessment. How high is the risk? What assets are most critical to protecting? What could happen if they were lost or compromised?
  • Cost. How much would it cost to recover from a breach? The more severe the potential financial damage, the more money businesses should consider directing toward cybersecurity.
  • Existing Controls. What defenses are already in place? If a company already has an extensive network of firewalls and intrusion detection systems, it may not need as much investment in additional security measures as another company.

Don’t budget more than is actually needed. The goal is to ensure that the right security measures are place to protect the organization. They don’t have to be the most expensive or sophisticated engineering solutions available.  They just need to work.

Think About the Cost of Underinvesting

The average data breach costs around $4 million, and this is just for the costs incurred directly by the victim. The real cost takes into consideration lost revenue and reputational damage.

Depending on the severity of the breach, businesses may be left dealing with an immediate loss of customer trust and reputation or even litigation from customers. It can also cause them to lose out on future business if customers don’t trust them with their money or personal information anymore.

Needless to say, no company can afford to take DevSecOps lightly.

Cybersecurity Is a Process, Not a Product

Cybersecurity should be a team effort that involves many people and departments throughout an organization. From the executive level to IT professionals to customer support personnel, everyone needs to be involved in cybersecurity efforts for the entire organization  to succeed.

It’s not enough for a network security team to just deploy their solution. Everyone needs to know how those solutions work and how they should be implemented. This includes ensuring that all new hires are trained on how these security solutions operate, so that everyone at the company understands and emphasizes cybersecurity in every aspect of their jobs.

They don’t need to know minute technical details, but they do need to understand the culture of cybersecurity and why it matters for their specific role in the company.

Budgeting Thoughtfully for Cybersecurity

Cybersecurity is a complex and ever-evolving field. To protect a business from cyber threats, cybersecurity defenders need to stay up to date on the latest security trends and technologies. But implementing good data hygiene practices takes time. There’s no quick fix for making sure all files have been properly encrypted or deleted.

  • Treat cybersecurity as a long-term investment. Cybersecurity isn’t something that can be put off until later — it’s an investment that can save businesses money long-term, but it’s also important to be thoughtful about how much it will cost and how best to spend that money.
  • Think beyond traditional IT solutions. Cybersecurity requires different skills than traditional IT, so don’t expect an existing IT staff to handle everything on their own. Businesses will also want someone who understands how human behavior affects security to help design processes that reduce the risk of someone inadvertently doing something that puts the company at risk.

Finding the Right Solution

One way for businesses to make sure their budgeting is on track is to work with someone who understands what kinds of threats exist and can give them realistic timelines for deploying effective solutions — and at what price point.

PreEmptive is committed to helping companies like yours protect their applications and networks from hackers, as well as ensuring that you are able to take control of your data. We offer free demos so you can see what we have to offer, and if you decide that our products are right for your business needs, we’ll be happy to work with you on a plan that fits within your budget.

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101

Spring Boot: An Overview

Spring Boot blog
Reading Time: 4 minutes

If you develop web or cloud applications in Java, you’ve probably heard about Spring Boot. This convenient tool is found in a huge range of Java applications, supporting them and keeping them running. However, if you’ve never worked with Spring Boot before, it’s not always immediately apparent what it is or how it works. You don’t need to guess anymore. Keep reading to learn what Java Spring Boot does, how it’s used in different applications, and what you need to do to make sure your Spring Boot application has all the security protection it needs to keep your users safe.

What Is Spring Boot?

Spring Boot is a tool designed to make it easier to write applications that run through the Java Spring framework. The Spring framework is an open-source Java framework designed to help enterprises develop standalone applications. The framework is structured to support applications for Java Virtual Machine (JVM) installations. 

Spring Boot makes that process simpler by offering three critical features for app developers:

  • Supports the standalone nature of Spring applications
  • Implements automatic configuration of Java libraries when possible
  • Provides an “opinionated” set of starter configuration beans for apps

Essentially, Spring Boot helps you bootstrap the development of your application by handling many of the behind-the-scenes concerns for you. Using Spring Boot, you can get quickly get started on development proper and waste less time setting up the basic Java Spring framework requirements. This makes it an excellent tool for any developer who wants to increase productivity and ship applications faster.

How Does Spring Boot Work?

Spring Boot accomplishes all that it does by setting up a microservice architecture within the Spring framework. Microservices are small, independent programs within a larger application that can either produce or consume data. In the case of Spring Boot, it produces data based on best practices and your pre-configured settings to handle many tasks automatically. 

For instance, the microservice nature of Spring Boot allows the tool to automatically set up a basic set of beans for an application. Depending on what jar dependencies you’ve included when you initialize Spring Boot, it will take that input and automatically find and include any beans you’ve left out that may be necessary. If, for example, you don’t include any database support beans in your application, Spring Boot will quietly implement them in the background. 

Similarly, it will autoconfigure the libraries that you add based on your settings. When possible, any libraries that you add will be configured to fit the settings and other libraries involved. 

Just as importantly, Spring Boot allows you to override any auto-configurations easily. If, at first, you allowed the program to configure embedded database support, you can replace it just by adding your own datasource bean. 

Setting up a Spring Boot application is easy, too. The Spring.io project offers a Spring Initializer that lets you input all of your important pre-configurations and generate a project file in which you can start writing right away. There’s no need to waste time putting together the base file. Spring does it for you.

Examples of Spring Boot Applications

Spring Boot is most commonly used for web and cloud applications. GitHub is full of excellent examples of applications developed using Spring Boot, such as:

  • Web Applications: The Spring.io website has been built using Spring Boot, so it perfectly demonstrates what the tool looks like in action. The code is up on GitHub, so you can explore how the tool was used to simplify the site’s setup.
  • Internet of Things (IoT) Applications: Spring Boot can kickstart IoT applications. A great example of how the tool can be used for IoT programs is the IxorTalk library, which can be quickly added to any Spring framework project to connect the app to Microsoft Azure and Amazon Web Services IoT offerings.

Still, Spring Boot isn’t perfect. Before you implement the tool in your next application, it’s essential to understand the potential drawbacks of Spring Boot and how to mitigate them. 

The Importance of In-App Protection for Java Spring Boot

Spring Boot has many benefits, but one thing it lacks is automatic security features. While the Spring framework does have some simple security options, they aren’t particularly thorough. Furthermore, you’ll need to continually update your app’s security whenever new threats appear.

You need to make sure your app has more protection than that. The solution is to implement your own in-app security. Hardening your app against security threats requires you to include features like:

  • Obfuscation. If your app contains any kind of private data, it needs to have obfuscation features. You should look for app security solutions that offer multiple forms of obfuscation, such as renaming, encryption, and control flow. This will help you protect everything from login credentials to personal user data.
  • Runtime checks. It’s just as important to ensure your applications aren’t tampered with. Runtime checks let your applications confirm whether or not they have been altered before they start any sensitive tasks. Furthermore, they can help you shut down the app if any unauthorized tampering occurs, helping you avoid data loss.
  • Regular updates. If you want your app to remain safe in the future, you must implement a security solution that will stay up-to-date. The best security solutions automatically update to continue protecting your applications whenever new threats appear.

PreEmptive’s DashO offers all of these features and more. You can add DashO to your Spring Boot application to ensure that it’s secure today and years from now.

Protect Your Spring Boot Application With PreEmptive

Spring Boot is an invaluable tool for Java developers who like the Spring framework. However, it’s important to have proper protection built into your program to avoid common risks native to the framework. That’s where PreEmptive can help. 

With PreEmptive’s DashO, you can protect your application from unnecessary security risks and keep things secure. It’s as easy as following a few simple instructions to ensure your application has built-in hardening protections to keep user data safe. You can learn more about how PreEmptive can help you protect your Spring framework application or get started with DashO today. 

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101

PreEmptive – JSDefender 101

PreEmptive - JSDefender 101
Reading Time: 3 minutes

Did you know JavaScript is used by 13.8 million developers worldwide? This means that 53% of developers either use or have used JavaScript at some point throughout their career. Making this the most popular coding language in web and cloud development. As programming languages are an essential tool, they are a critical security & quality priority that all developers are focused on. And since programming languages are also opportunities for attack, it is essential to implement obfuscation protection as preventative measures to protect your work from being copied, attacked or leveraged to cause further damage.

Just like in our previous 101’s for Dofuscator for .NET, in this article we explain how JSDefender for JavaScript can help secure and protect your work using obfuscation techniques with additional layered security.

What is the Product used for?

Similar to Dotfuscator for .NET, JSDefender is primarily used to protect and harden your applications that are composed of JavaScript. It encrypts your projects through a layered approach. Javascript is commonly used and as the risks of hacking continue to expand, it’s more proficient to implement code security at the early stages of development. In other words, by not using some sort of cybersecurity, it is like leaving your phone on the table and unlocked for the world to see what you’re up to. But, on this scale it is not just your data that is exposed, but the entirety of your users data and product IP.

How does JSDefender work?

JavaScript apps are typically distributed in source form, meaning your code can easily be visible to anyone with access to a browser. If a project isn’t protected, a hacker can conveniently use a debugger (that is built in their browser) along with other sophisticated tools to analyze your code for vulnerabilities – which highlights the path of hijacking your project. JSDefender uses a layered approach that is applied to the binary code using obfuscation, encryption, tamper detection, domain locks, debugger removal, function recording and more, basically scrambling the source code making this very difficult for the average hacker.

When should you use JSDefender?

Anyone who is developing an IoT (internet of things), mobile/desktop application, SaaS (software as a service), or any system software program using JavaScript as your language of development, should be using JSDefender. It’s widely known that investing in DevSecOps (development security operations) is of increasing importance for not only companies, but freelancers as well. There is not an industry that has not been affected by a data breach, and any company who uses or has built a website should know the importance of investing in DevSecOps. We did a case study of GlobalMed who used JSDefender in order to protect their advanced virtual health platform and now they have become the world’s number one telemedicine company!

Where does JSDefender work?

JSDefender is injected directly into your source code. You can specify your own configuration file or use command line options to set up protection attributes. It takes minutes to set up and seconds to begin securing your source file. We have developed a demo so that you can visually see how this works in real time!

JSDefender demo

Why should you use PreEmptive JSDefender?

By using JSDefender you are taking action against any type of attacks to your JavaScript projects by obscuring and managing your vulnerabilities directly in your code within a matter of seconds. We know time is of the essence in development, but implementing security in the beginning of the SDLC saves you time, money and protects your reputation in the long-run. Waiting until the end to scan for vulnerabilities will only prolong the development cycle and you will end up running into issues that could have been avoided if security was part of the process early on. JavaScript is here to stay and as the world of tech advances, so will hackers. So if you feel that your DevSecOps isn’t up to par or stressed about being hacked, download a free trial by visiting our product page and start protecting your intellectual property today!

For more information on how to get started or need further help, we encourage you to use our resources, found in our navigation bar. We hope this blog has guided you to better understand JSDefender for JavaScript. Be on the lookout for our upcoming 101’s! 

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101

Dotfuscator 101

Dotfuscator 101
Reading Time: 4 minutes

In this blog we will dive into Dotfuscator  as part of our 101 series – we walk you through what Dofuscator for .NET does and how this can help protect your projects. 

For those of you who are in the industry and know how this product protects your code, we appreciate the loyalty! If you are not tech savvy, but want to know a little bit more about this product, here’s our summary:

What is Dotfuscator for .NET?

Dotfuscator – by definition is a multi-functional tool that combines obfuscation, optimization while shrinking your source code, on .NET, Xamarin and Windows Platform Apps. Basically this jumbles, encrypts your code, hardening it to prevent theft. 

How does Dotfuscator work?

PreEmptive Dotfuscator for .Net provides many layers of protection for .NET users with multiple forms of obfuscation. We like to describe this as constructing the perfect sandwich.

  • First we start with the bread, in this case we will call it Renaming. Renaming obfuscation alters the variables and methods making it difficult to read or scan over to gain access to the certain parts of your source code. However, we go a little further by making things extra difficult for the typical hacker by utilizing Overload Induction™. This renames as many methods as possible to the same name instead of changing one variable one by one. To say this least – this is what makes the “bread” harden at surface level.
  • Then add the veggies: lettuce (Control Flow) and tomato (String Encryption). Control Flow uses advanced obfuscation by falsifying conditional statements. Basically it destroys the code patterns that decompilers use to recreate source code resulting in spaghetti logic to confuse anyone who tries to crack the code. Adding the tomato to this (String Encryption), hides all the strings that are present in the user’s assembly. To better explain, the typical hacker will locate string references inside the binary. Usually if the application is time sensitive, a message will pop up when time has expired – this is exactly what hackers search for inside the decompiled output indicating that they are VERY close to stealing your algorithm. Dotfuscator directly addresses this issue by allowing the user to encrypt strings in the most vulnerable part of the source code. 
  • Now comes the choice of meat (Watermarking, Pruning, Linking-Assembly Merging). Watermarking helps track unauthorized copies of the user’s project by embedding copyright information directly into .NET applications without jeopardizing runtime behavior. Pruning takes the work out for you by removing unused types, methods, fields, debugging information and non-essential metadata from a MSIL file all while processing. Dotfuscator Linking-Assembly Merger combines multiple input assemblies into one or more output assemblies – meaning it shrinks your application down alongside pruning and renaming. 
  • Next is the cheese (Tamper Detection & Defense). Dotfuscator injects code that verifies your application’s integrity during runtime and if it detects tampering, it will shut down the application, invoking random crashes. Now that’s an excellent choice of cheese! 
  • Last but not least are the condiments: mayo (Debug Detection) and mustard (Defense Using Checks). These two are prebuilt into Dotfuscator and can be injected into the .NET apps. This allows your app to detect any unauthorized uses such as debugging or tampering of any sort. Don’t be fooled, checks can do more than just the average scanning, they can react too, for example – exiting the app when tampering is found. 
  • For those who like a little extra to the sandwich, (Shelf Life) is the pickle! Shelf Life is an inventory management function that allows you to embed an expiration date, de-activation, and notification logic to your code! Now this is what we call the ultimate sandwich! 

When should you use Dotfuscator?

Whether you’re a start-up company, freelancer or an organization developing projects using .NET software, you should be using this in the development process – preferably in the beginning stages even after launches. Data breaches are no longer part of the “new normal” they are part of everyday scenarios. If you don’t protect your code from the beginning…you will likely become another data breach statistic.

Where does Dotfuscator work?

Dotfuscator is injected directly into your source code, providing a multi-layered approach by way of in-app hardening; assessing and securing where your code is vulnerable.  

Why should you use PreEmptive Dotfuscator?

PreEmptive Dotfuscator has paved the way in In-App security since 2003, that’s 19 years in the biz! Our clients range from small to large enterprises including many Fortune 500 companies of different industries from medical to government agencies. But if you still need a little more convincing, check out our client list here! 

For more information on how to get started, download our free trial or need further help, we encourage you to use our resources, found in our navigation bar. We hope this blog has helped you better understand Dotfuscator for .NET. We look forward to our next 101!

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101

Top 3 Reasons to Use PreEmptive

Top 3 Reasons to Use PreEmptive
Reading Time: 3 minutes

Cyber attacks are part of our everyday discussions and most likely will continue to be present throughout the next 12-18 months. With the rise in nation state attacks, and consistent expansion of IOT tools developers have to stay focused on the prescience of cyber threats. For those who followed our #DataPrivacyWeek on our social platforms, we explained that our personal lives are very much intertwined with our work lives, with many folks working remotely, we are more likely to be part of those data breaches we read in the news, as a side effect of network security risks. In this article we will dive into the primary reasons your team can benefit from PreEmptive to protect your applications. 

While we were focused on supply chain attacks, ransomware threats, we overlooked another but equally prominent risk – mobile app breaches. There were over 200 BILLION mobile application downloads in 2021 and that number will most likely increase as we progress through 2022. This means, if you’re a programmer developing an app or creating a program that consists of custom code, securing your work is more important than ever. Here are the top 3 reasons why you should use PreEmptive to add a security layer to your applications:

Reason 3: Protecting Your Hard Work

We understand the countless hours that go into coding, whether that was spent on debugging, creating or troubleshooting your code’s infrastructure, it takes hard work. Many developers have projects that have been in the works for lengths at a time and have firm deadlines to meet. So when a project is complete it feels like gold! We tend to concentrate on completing our projects and ensuring that functionality/usability is up to standard. But, security is often an afterthought. PreEmptive In-App security features have been helping programmers prevent, detect, and respond to attacks without breaking or slowing down your applications – giving you a peace of mind throughout development. Sure, we all want to complete our projects on time or earlier than expected, but if we treat our projects like we treat our phones by putting a lock on it, then that finish line will look even sweeter. 

Reason 2: Knowing the Functionality of Your Security

Data breaches are a hot topic, so searching for the right security platform has become even more of a priority. One of the factors when searching for the right security toolset – how does it actually work? PreEmptive has a layered approach when it comes to protecting your data. Think of it as building your perfect sandwich starting with the bread (obfuscation), adding the meat (renaming code), then the veggies – lettuce (string encryption), tomato (control flow) and more, topping it off with the condiments (active runtime checks) that monitors tampering, debugs, and more. Now that you know what’s in the perfect “security sandwich,” it’s imperative that you continue to test and secure after each build. This will allow you to have the confidence in your security application.

Reason 1: Becoming another Data Breach Statistic

Every month there is another data breach that is brought to our attention. Which makes you really think, are you choosing the right security platform? How do you know this platform is the right one? Assessing the needs of your company/organization or projects is the first step, next researching security options. Some promise to be “the leading” security platform or the “number one,” but PreEmptive has been in the biz since 1996. That’s over 20 years of securing your applications! Not only do we have the experience, we have hundreds of fortune 500 companies who use PreEmptive, Charles Schwab, FedEx, Census Bureau, Microsoft to name a few. If these companies trust our software, we guarantee that by using us, you won’t become another data breach victim.

In case you still need more information, we encourage everyone to read our case studies to find out how other companies found success in protecting their companies with PreEmptive. We hope this blog has eased your worries, but if you’re not sold try us with a FREE Trial! 

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101

PreEmptive 101

PreEmptive 101
Reading Time: 3 minutes

In this blog we’ve established a 101 – of all things PreEmptive. Our goal is to help you comprehensively understand PreEmptive and our products in basic terms. This is a great piece of content to share with your team, decision makers or that pesky finance department that won’t give you extra budget for security tools.

For those of you who are in the industry and know what we offer, we appreciate the loyalty! If you are new to the industry and are not tech savvy, but want to know a little bit more about PreEmptive, check out our 5 W’s:

Who is PreEmptive?

PreEmptive is an Idera INC software company. We have been obfuscating and protecting applications since 1996, starting with DashO for Java then expanding over the last 20 years to our full range of solutions that you see today! Our core values are: to help organizations make their applications more resilient to hacking and tampering –  to protect intellectual property, to secure sensitive data, and enhance revenue. In other words, PreEmptive is the first line of defense for your code!

What is PreEmptive?

PreEmptive is a software security solution that helps you protect and secure your apps intelligently through a layered approach. Our multi-faeceted approach is applied to the binary code to provide: obfuscation, encryption, root detection, shielding and tamper detection with the end goal of making life difficult for hackers & bots. Let’s add some definitions, what is obfuscation? Obfuscation means making something unclear or obscure – it’s like a frosted window, it obscures your vision but does not prevent functionality. With code obfuscation the goal is to conceal the underlying code that enables the application to function, while ensuring effective functionality of the application 

How is this achieved? Our layered application hardening and shielding is directly infused into your .NET, Java, Android, JavaScript and iOS applications. Which means, we do not require changes to your end user’s computer/device or network to stay fully protected– the solution does the dirty work for you, securing the app against any vulnerabilities in your projects and jumbles up the code so that hackers can’t reverse engineer your proprietary information!

  • PreEmptive not only “scrambles” your source code, but also has the right mix of protection, response and security reporting features, allowing the user to better protect their projects and defending against the ever-evolving data, IP theft, fraud, brand damage and drastic revenue loss. 
  • PreEmptive offers 4 different types of protection: Dotfuscator, DashO, JSDefender, and PreEmptive Protection for iOS. Here’s the key differences:
    • Dotfuscator provides many layers of protection for .NET users with multiple forms of obfuscation (renaming, string encryption, watermarking, active runtime checks (tamper, debug, root, and more).
    • DashO is a security plugin for Android and Java users providing layers of protection by obfuscation (renaming, string encryption, resource encryption, and more).
    • JSDefender is for teams that use Javascript, securing their applications through in-app protection and code obfuscation. This tool helps teams to prevent code from being easily visible to anyone with access to a browser.
    • PreEmptive Protection (iOS) protects all Objective-C iOS applications, reducing the risk of piracy, intellectual property theft and tampering. (Don’t worry, if you’re feeling lost, we will dive into more in depth on each product in our upcoming blogs)

When should you use PreEmptive?

If you’re a start-up company that has blossomed overnight, a freelancer with multiple clients, or a large corporation who needs to enhance their security program, that’s when PreEmptive should come into play. With fair pricing based on your project needs, PreEmptive can be applicable for many organizations.. When writing any source code without protection, you are susceptible to damage and theft, which has long term financial implications. By using any of the PreEmptive products, your team will feel at ease instantaneously, knowing your code is secure even after deployment!

Where does this work?

PreEmptive is injected into your source code, but our operational playbook includes a bottom-up evaluation of security risks, vulnerability mitigation techniques, and post deployment protection to further reduce exposure.

Why should you use PreEmptive?

PreEmptive not only offers different packages based on your needs, but it has been the leading security system for over 17 years! We test, obscure and manage your vulnerabilities directly in your code, so if you feel worried about hackers or stressed about how secure your projects are, check out your options by visiting our main page!

For more information on how to get started or need further help, we encourage you to use our resources, found in our navigation bar. We hope this blog has guided you to understand what it is we do. Be on the lookout for our upcoming 101’s!