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At what cost should software be secure?

As malware threats continue to run high and cyberthieves find new ways to exploit small and medium businesses, a debate has emerged as to whether smaller enterprises should proactively invest in security development for its software or if they should wait until something happens to address the problem.

At the 2013 RSA security conference, two security experts explored the dilemma in great length. While neither panelist advocated for developers to ignore product bugs, the issue at hand was how and when fixes should occur. 

Cost effectiveness vs. client trust
Financial and IT security resources are finite in all but the most cash-rich companies, and at some point, a decision needs to be made as to how much of an IT budget is devoted to security. With the exception of those large companies, running elaborate security development lifecycle processes is often not practical.

"I know dozens and dozens of companies who look at the systems development life cycle and say, 'Are you kidding me? This would put me out of business,'" security expert and panelist John Viega was quoted as saying in ThreatPost.

Yet, as both businesses and consumers rely on secure transactions through merchant accounts and payment card terminals, vendors and developers must take greater steps toward securing sensitive data through advanced cryptographic tools to maintain a client's trust and the expectation of future sales.

Affordable solutions to keep data safe
Most small and mid-sized businesses do not have the resources for extended development life cycles to monitor the security of their software and networks, although there are affordable ways companies can maintain a high level of network security without straining their budget. Strong encryption remains one of the best ways to keep transactions secure as is ensuring that certificates are current and from a trusted certificate authority (CA).

Overall, taking proactive measures toward securing data is the biggest step companies and developers can take to maintain clients' trust.  Stop by Thawte, a recognized leader in security, and get the latest in SSL certificates.

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