Learning

Since starting this blog, I’ve tried to spend more time reading up on hacking to sharpen my skills andbe more helpful to other developers.  In the process I’ve learned two things:

1. I’m definitely an amateur and have much left to learn.
2. If you’re a web developer and online security doesn’t freak you out, you need to wake up.

In the past I worked with a popular forum script and learned about some basic security problems through that experience.  But now I realize how many potential attacks can exist in a site with user-generated content.  I’m also realizing that visions of data portability for social networks are not only complicated by privacy concerns, but security concerns.  A developer has to be extremely careful any time he/she opens a site to content from third parties.

I have in mind a few basic security tips that are once again not new but well worth reiterating that I’ll try to put into some posts soon.  Right now educational endeavors sap most of my time, but that should change in a few weeks.