From Vulnerable to Secure Code: Defending against OWASP’s Top 10 Threats

The OWASP (Open Worldwide Application Security Project) Top 10:2025 brings critical updates that reshape how we understand application security. Broken Access Control remains the leading risk, Security Misconfiguration has climbed the rankings, and two game-changing categories have emerged: Software Supply Chain Failures and Mishandling of Exceptional Conditions.

In this session, we will move beyond vulnerability lists and dive deep into the developer’s perspective, exploring practical secure coding techniques that prevent these threats at their source. Participants will learn:
1) how a single misconfigured dependency can compromise an entire software supply chain
2) why error messages are becoming attackers’ favourite reconnaissance tools
3) real-world code patterns that introduce Broken Access Control and how to fix them
4) the shift from reactive patching to proactive, secure-by-design development

Drawing on academic research and hands-on teaching experience, this talk bridges the gap between security theory and real-world implementation. Whether you are developing Java microservices, Python APIs, or JavaScript frontends, you will leave with actionable checklists, code examples, and a developer-centric mindset for building resilience into every line of code.

This is not another post-mortem on what went wrong. This is your blueprint for writing code that attackers cannot exploit.