Secure Software Development Policy (ENG-POL-001)

1. Objective

This policy establishes comprehensive requirements for secure software development practices throughout the entire software development lifecycle (SDLC). The policy ensures that all video streaming platform applications, services, and systems are designed, developed, and deployed with appropriate security controls and privacy protections that safeguard user data and maintain system integrity.

2. Scope

This policy applies comprehensively to all software development activities for the video streaming platform. The scope encompasses web applications, mobile applications, APIs, microservices, recommendation algorithms, and content processing systems. All development teams, contractors, and third parties involved in software development for [Company Name] must comply with these requirements regardless of their employment status or contractual arrangement.

3. Policy

3.1 Secure Development Lifecycle

  • The Company must integrate security throughout all phases of the software development lifecycle (SDLC).
  • Security requirements definition must be completed during project planning phases.
  • Threat modeling and security architecture reviews must be conducted during the design phase.
  • All development teams must implement secure coding practices during the development phase.
  • Security testing must be performed throughout development and before any deployment.
  • Security validation must occur during deployment and operational phases.
  • Regular security updates and maintenance must be implemented for all deployed systems.

3.2 Privacy by Design

  • All software development must implement data minimization principles in system design and data collection processes.
  • Development teams must enforce purpose limitation ensuring data is used only for explicitly stated purposes.
  • Privacy impact assessments (PIAs) must be conducted for all new features that process user data.
  • User consent mechanisms must be integrated into application workflows where legally required.
  • The Company must implement data subject rights functionality including access, rectification, erasure, and portability capabilities.
  • Privacy-preserving technologies must be implemented where applicable, including encryption and anonymization techniques.
  • User interfaces must be designed to prohibit dark patterns and must not deceive, manipulate, or otherwise impair users’ ability to make free and informed decisions, in compliance with DSA Article 25, with mandatory verification during UI/UX review and application security testing.

3.3 Secure Coding Standards

  • Development teams must use only approved programming languages and frameworks for all projects.
  • All user inputs must undergo input validation and output encoding to prevent injection attacks.
  • Proper authentication and authorization mechanisms must be implemented for all system access points.
  • Secure session management and token handling must be implemented in all applications.
  • All applications must include protection against common vulnerabilities as defined in the OWASP Top 10.
  • API design and implementation must follow secure development principles and standards.
  • Error handling must be implemented properly without disclosing sensitive information to unauthorized parties.

3.4 Code Review and Testing

  • All code must undergo mandatory peer code reviews with a specific security focus before deployment.
  • Static Application Security Testing (SAST) must be integrated into all build pipelines and executed automatically.
  • Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) must be performed for all web applications before production release.
  • Interactive Application Security Testing (IAST) must be implemented where technically applicable and feasible.
  • Software Composition Analysis (SCA) must be conducted for all third-party dependencies prior to integration.
  • Manual security testing must be performed for all critical system components and high-risk functionalities.

3.5 Platform-Specific Security Requirements

Special requirements for video streaming platform development:

Content Processing Systems:

All content processing systems must implement comprehensive security controls for user-generated content. Secure handling protocols must be established for all user-generated content uploads, including mandatory malware scanning for all uploaded content before processing. Content encoding and transcoding operations must include security controls to prevent exploitation, and digital rights management (DRM) integration must be implemented to protect intellectual property. Content delivery optimization must incorporate security controls to ensure safe and efficient distribution.

Recommendation Algorithms:

All recommendation algorithms must undergo comprehensive testing and validation to ensure fairness and prevent bias. Bias testing and fairness assessments must be conducted regularly to identify and mitigate discriminatory outcomes. Algorithm transparency and explainability features must be implemented to provide users with insight into recommendation logic. Protection mechanisms must be established to prevent manipulation and gaming of recommendation systems. User control mechanisms must be provided for recommendation preferences, and privacy-preserving recommendation techniques must be implemented to protect user data while maintaining service quality.

Mobile Applications:

  • Mobile applications must comply with platform-specific security guidelines for both iOS and Android platforms.
  • All mobile applications must implement secure communication protocols with backend services.
  • Local data encryption and secure storage must be implemented for all sensitive information stored on mobile devices.
  • App store security requirements must be met for all mobile application releases.
  • Mobile device security features must be integrated where available to enhance application security.

3.6 Third-Party Component Management

  • All third-party libraries and components must be sourced from approved software component repositories and registries.
  • Vulnerability scanning must be performed on all third-party dependencies before integration and regularly thereafter.
  • License compliance verification must be conducted for all components to ensure legal compliance.
  • Regular updates and patching must be applied to all third-party components to address security vulnerabilities.
  • Documentation must be maintained for all external dependencies including version information and security status.

3.7 Development Environment Security

Development environments must be properly secured through comprehensive controls and procedures. Separate development, staging, and production environments must be maintained to prevent cross-contamination of code and data. Access controls and authentication mechanisms must be implemented for all development systems to ensure only authorized personnel can access sensitive resources. Secure configuration management and version control systems must be used to track and protect code changes. Protection of development credentials and API keys must be implemented through secure storage and access management practices, and regular security updates must be applied to all development tools and systems.

3.8 Payment Application Security (PCI DSS Requirements)

All software development related to payment applications or systems within the Cardholder Data Environment (CDE) must adhere to PCI DSS secure software development requirements. Developers working on payment applications must receive annual training on secure coding techniques and emerging threats related to payment security to maintain current knowledge and skills. Changes to bespoke and custom software, especially payment applications, must strictly follow the Change Control Policy (ENG-POL-002) to prevent the introduction of new vulnerabilities that could compromise payment data security.

4. Standards Compliance

Policy Section Standard/Framework Control Reference
3.1 ISO/IEC 27001:2022 A.14.2.1
3.1 PCI DSS v4.0 Req. 6.2.1
3.2 GDPR Art. 25
3.2 CCPA § 1798.100
3.2 PCI DSS v4.0 Req. 6.2.2
3.3 NIST Cybersecurity Framework PR.DS-2
3.3 PCI DSS v4.0 Req. 6.2.3
3.4 SOC 2 Type II CC8.1
3.4 PCI DSS v4.0 Req. 6.3.1
3.5 COPPA § 312.8
3.5 PCI DSS v4.0 Req. 6.2.2
3.6 ISO/IEC 27001:2022 A.14.2.8
3.6 PCI DSS v4.0 Req. 6.3.2
3.8 PCI DSS v4.0 Req. 6.2, 6.5

5. Definitions

Secure Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC): A framework that integrates security activities into every phase of software development.

Privacy by Design: An approach that embeds privacy considerations into the design and architecture of systems and business practices.

Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA): A process to identify and mitigate privacy risks in new or modified systems and processes.

Static Application Security Testing (SAST): Automated testing of source code to identify security vulnerabilities without executing the program.

Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST): Automated testing of running applications to identify security vulnerabilities.

Software Composition Analysis (SCA): Analysis of third-party and open source components to identify security and compliance issues.

Digital Rights Management (DRM): Technologies used to protect copyrighted digital content from unauthorized access and distribution.

6. Responsibilities

Role Responsibility
[Development Department/Team Name] Implement secure coding practices, conduct code reviews, integrate security testing, and remediate identified vulnerabilities.
Security Champions Provide security guidance to development teams, review security designs, and promote security awareness within engineering.
Product Managers Define security and privacy requirements, conduct privacy impact assessments, and ensure compliance with platform policies.
DevSecOps Team Maintain security testing tools, integrate security into CI/CD pipelines, and monitor security metrics across development.
[Privacy Department/Team Name] Review privacy impact assessments, provide privacy guidance, and ensure compliance with data protection requirements.
Architecture Team Design secure system architectures, conduct threat modeling, and establish security standards for platform components.

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