What is Secure Code Review?

Understanding Secure Code Review

Secure Code Review goes far beyond looking for functional bugs to specifically identify security vulnerabilities in application source code before they reach production. Unlike dynamic testing, which finds issues by running the application, code reviews examine the actual implementation to find flaws like input validation errors, hardcoded credentials, insecure cryptographic implementations, or broken access controls. Effective reviews combine automated scanning tools with manual examination by experienced security professionals. Automated tools excel at finding common issues like SQL injection or cross-site scripting across large codebases, while human reviewers bring contextual understanding and can identify logical flaws that tools miss. The process works best when integrated into the development workflow rather than performed as a gate at the end of development. Organizations that implement robust code review processes typically see dramatic reductions in vulnerabilities reaching production, significant cost savings from early detection, and improved security awareness among developers.