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5. Guidelines

data loss of the organisations or users. (iv) Access Control (j) Turn on node checking to verify applications and users.

The government organisation will ensure and monitor that the host (v) Cryptographic Practices (k) Turn off all unnecessary database functionality (e.g., unnecessary stored procedures or
(vi) Error Handling & Logging services, utility packages, install only the minimum set of features and options required (surface
service provider and the developer adhere to the industry best (vii) Data Protection area reduction)

security practices and guidelines such as ISO 27001, OWASP ASVS, (viii) Communication Security (l) Enforce a strict access control policy and introduce role-based access control (RBAC)

OWASP Top 10 vulnerabilities and CIS benchmarks as per the (ix) System Configuration privileges.
(x) Database Security (m) Enable audit trail logs on the database servers.
prevailing security policy. Following guidelines are to secure web
(xi) File Management (n) Ensure appropriate logging and monitoring of database logs.
resources & associated infrastructure: (xii) Memory Management (o) Consider fine grained record/row level auditing based on the sensitivity of data.

(n) Implement logging functionality and periodically auditing the web logs for suspicious activity. (p) Implement a backup solution to store data and system configurations from the website, web

Statement: Website, web application, web portal or mobile app (o) Configure website, web application or web portal caching to optimize resource availability. application or web portal that should be backed up periodically.
(p) Sanitise user input at both the client end and the server end with both syntactical as well as Note: One of the best methods to keep a website/app safe is to have a good backup solution
have been Security Audited and an Audit Clearance certificate has a semantic approach. and the user should have more than one data backup. Each of these two backups is crucial to
been issued by NIC/ STQC/ STQC empanelled laboratory/CERT (q) The technology to be implemented should be chosen after careful consideration. Various recovering a website after a major security incident occurs. There are several different

-In empanelled laboratory before hosting in production client-side Active Content Technologies are available e.g., Java scripts etc. Each has its own solutions one can use to help recover damaged or lost files. Keep the website information

environment. strengths and weaknesses along with an associated risk. off-site. Do not store the backups on the same server as of the website; they are as vulnerable
(r) Disable the root user access to run the code on Linux/Unix hosts. to attacks too. Choose to keep the website backup on a home computer or hard drive. Find
(s) Use explicit path names when invoking external programs and not rely on the PATH an off-site place to store the data and to protect it from hardware failures, hacks and viruses.
Benefits: The goal of securing a website, web application, web portal or mobile app is to maintain
Protecting web resources from unauthorised use, access, environment value. Another option is to back up the website in the cloud. It makes storing data easy and allows
the confidentiality, integrity and availability of information and services. This goal is accomplished
changes, destruction, or disruption is generally termed as through the implementation of best security practices in design, development and deployment. B. Securing databases: Database being the core of any application and/or organisation and is access to information from anywhere. Besides choosing where to back up the website, one
must consider automating them. Use a solution where one can schedule the website/app
used to store large amounts of highly sensitive and personal information. Therefore, appropriate
“Website Security” or “Secured Website”. Attacks could cause both personal embarrassment and financial risks. technical controls should be in place to safeguard the databases and information stored in them. backups. It has to be ensured that the solution has a reliable recovery system. Be redundant
Government organisation action: It should be ensured that the website, web application, web
The following are the guidelines for securing databases: in the backup process — backup the backups. By doing this, one can recover files from any
portal or mobile app don’t have any security risks as identified by the latest OWASP Top 10
Sometimes web resources become unavailable due to vulnerability list. The design and development agency or the developers should follow industry (a) Implement strong encryption and key management mechanism for the information both at point before the hack or virus occurs.

denial-of-service attacks or display modified information on the best practices such as OWASP ASVS and OWASP MAVS. rest and transit. (q) Keep the backup media file in safe custody and access to it should be restricted and logged.
(r) Conduct periodic auditing of Web Application - at least once in a year or as and when any
(b) Implement strong hashing and salting algorithms to store passwords in the database.
webpages. Millions of passwords, email addresses and credit card Developer action: Securing critical web resources is more important than ever as the focus of (c) Use secure credentials for database access. Remove or change all default database changes are done in the source code, whichever is earlier.
attackers has steadily moved towards the application layer and they are exploiting the weaknesses
details have been leaked into the public domain exposing web users administrative passwords. (s) Report any web application-related security incidents observed to NIC-CERT & CERT-In
in the code.
to both personal embarrassment and financial risks. The purpose of (d) Utilise strong passwords//phrases or implement multi-factor authentication. immediately at Incident Response Helpdesk:
(e) Disable unnecessary accounts such as orphaned accounts, unused accounts, generic and NIC-CERT: incident@nic-cert.nic.in
Website Security is to prevent such risks. A. Securing Code service accounts. CERT-In: incident@cert-in.org.in

Website Security requires vigilance in all aspects starting from (a) Ensure that all websites, web applications, web portals or mobile apps and their respective (f) Enable access to the database only from the Web Server on a whitelisted port and it should Toll free phone: CERT-In - +91-1800-11-4949
CMS, 3rd party plugins, codes, etc. are updated to the latest vers ions.
design, coding and implementation to testing and deployment. Note: Every day, there are countless websites/apps compromised due to outdated software. not be assigned publicly accessible IP. Evaluator action: The evaluator shall check that the website/ web application/ web portal/ mobile

Organisations should implement appropriate security majors, Potential hackers and bots are scanning websites/apps to attack. Updates are vital to the (g) TLS should be enabled in databases for secure communications between web servers and app under evaluation has a valid security audit certificate issued by NIC/STQC/STQC empanelled
databases. laboratory/ Cert-IN empanelled laboratory fulfilling Cert-IN requirements.
defences and countermeasures to protect web resources against health and security of the website/app. If the website’s software or applications are not (h) Create admin restrictions, such as by controlling privileged access on what users can do in a

malfunctioning, phishing, cyber-crimes or cyberattacks to avoid up-to-date, the website/app is not secure. Take all software and plugin update requests database.
seriously. Updates often contain security enhancements and vulnerability repairs. Check the
(i) The application should use the lowest possible level of privilege when accessing the database.
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