Secure Application
Development
We build software with security as a first-class requirement — hardened by design, not by patching. Every application we ship is engineered with the same adversarial mindset our penetration testers bring to the systems they break.
Engineers who break applications for a living — now building yours to be unbreakable
The Attacker's Perspective In Every Sprint
ZecurX developers are trained by the same team that conducts our penetration testing engagements. Every developer understands how applications are broken — not just how they are built. The result is code that anticipates adversarial inputs,and treats every external interface as a potential attack surface.
Security Requirements Before Sprint 1
Every engagement begins with threat modelling and security requirement definition — before the first user story is written. Authentication models, authorisation boundaries, data classification, encryption requirements, and input validation rules are defined as engineering constraints, not retrospective audits.
OWASP-Aligned by Default
Every web application is built against the OWASP Application Security Verification Standard (ASVS). Every API is designed against the OWASP API Security Top 10. These are not external checklists applied at the end — they are the engineering standards we code to from day one.
Built to Be Tested and Certified
Applications built by ZecurX are designed to pass penetration testing — including our own Layer 01 red team. We deliver applications with security documentation, data flow diagrams, threat models, and test evidence that satisfy SOC 2, ISO 27001, PCI-DSS, and regulatory audit requirements without additional remediation effort.
Six Specialised Secure Development Capabilities
From architecture blueprints to production-ready, audit-certified applications — one integrated secure development practice.
Secure Web Application Development
React, Next.js, and Node.js applications built with OWASP ASVS Level 2 as the development baseline — authentication, authorisation, session management, input validation, and CSP hardening defined as engineering requirements before Sprint 1. Security documentation delivered at handover: threat model, DFDs, ASVS coverage matrix, and ADRs.
Secure Mobile Development
iOS and Android applications built to OWASP MASVS L1 and L2 standards — Keychain/Keystore-based credential storage, certificate pinning, biometric authentication, anti-tampering controls, and cleartext elimination. Built to satisfy RBI mobile banking controls and CERT-In audit requirements.
API Design & Development
REST and GraphQL APIs designed spec-first with authentication, BOLA/IDOR prevention, rate limiting, granular authorisation, and structured audit logging as core architectural features. OWASP API Security Top 10 addressed at design phase — not discovered in penetration testing.
AI Product Development
LLM-powered applications and autonomous agents built with prompt injection-resistant architecture, integrated safety guardrails, RAG security controls, output monitoring, and EU AI Act compliance documentation. Safety and guardrails as first-class product features — not post-launch additions.
Legacy System Modernisation
Secure migration from monolithic architectures to microservices — pre-migration security audit, security-aligned decomposition, authentication and authorisation model migration, mTLS service mesh, and post-migration OWASP ASVS validation. Zero security regression guaranteed across every migration phase.
Security Architecture Design
STRIDE + PASTA threat modelling, zero-trust architecture design, trust boundary mapping, cryptographic architecture review, and security ADRs for new products before development begins. The highest-ROI security investment in the development lifecycle — changes cost a whiteboard session, not a refactor.
The ZecurX Secure SDLC Framework
Security integrated at every stage of the software development lifecycle — from concept to production and beyond.
Design
Threat modelling, security architecture review, trust boundary mapping, security ADRs.
Requirements
OWASP ASVS/MASVS security requirements as engineering stories — defined before Sprint 1.
Develop
Secure coding standards, security-literate code review, SAST on every PR.
Build
SCA, secrets scanning, SBOM generation, dependency lock, and artifact signing.
Test
DAST, security regression testing, penetration testing on staging.
Deploy & Operate
Security configuration validation, runtime monitoring, and continuous OWASP ASVS compliance.
What You Receive
Audit-ready documentation delivered at handover — not after a separate remediation engagement.
Security Architecture Document
Formal threat model (STRIDE + PASTA), data flow diagrams, trust boundary map, security requirements traceability matrix, and Architecture Decision Records with explicit security rationale — suitable for engineering briefing, compliance audit, and investor due diligence.
OWASP ASVS Coverage Matrix
Complete mapping of the delivered application against OWASP ASVS Level 2 requirements — documenting how each security control is implemented, with evidence references. Ready for penetration test briefing, SOC 2 audit, and enterprise security questionnaire response.
Security Documentation Package
Data flow diagrams, authentication model specification, API security schema, encryption design document, and dependency SCA report — the complete security documentation set that answers every enterprise customer security questionnaire and satisfies auditor evidence requests.
Regulatory Compliance Mapping
Application security controls mapped to CERT-In, RBI, IRDAI, PCI-DSS v4.0 Requirements 6 and 11, DPDPA 2023, and EU AI Act (for AI product engagements) — delivered as a compliance evidence document ready for regulatory audit.
Proven secure development outcomes
How our secure application development engagements have delivered clean audits, zero regressions, and applications that pass penetration testing on first attempt.
Zero Critical Findings on Initial Pentest — All 40 Hospital Security Questionnaires Completed in 3 Days
"ZecurX built the application from the ground up against OWASP ASVS Level 2, with field-level encryption for all PHI, WebAuthn authentication for medical staff, and a complete security documentation package. When the mandatory penetration test was conducted by the hospital group's appointed testing firm, zero critical or high-severity findings were identified — the first time this hospital group had seen a zero-high result on an initial assessment of any new vendor application. All 40 hospital security questionnaires were completed in 3 days using the security documentation ZecurX delivered at handover."
Zero Critical Findings on CERT-In Audit — ₹12 Crore Disbursed in First 90 Days
"ZecurX built both iOS and Android applications from the ground up against OWASP MASVS L2, with full certificate pinning, Keychain/Keystore-based credential storage, biometric authentication, and anti-tampering controls. The CERT-In audit identified zero critical or high-severity findings. The applications launched on schedule and processed ₹12 Crore in loan disbursements in the first 90 days without a single security incident. The startup's NBFC licence renewal specifically cited the CERT-In clean audit as evidence of adequate cybersecurity controls."
14 High-Severity API Findings Eliminated — ISO 27001 Regained, 3 Enterprise Clients Reinstated
"A B2B payments platform needed to rebuild their core API layer after a penetration test identified 14 high-severity findings — including a critical BOLA vulnerability allowing one enterprise client to query another's transaction history by incrementing a numeric ID, and an absent rate limiting implementation that had allowed a competitor's automated tool to enumerate 340,000 account records. ZecurX redesigned and rebuilt the API layer from the ground up — UUID-based resource identification, object-level authorisation on every endpoint, per-client rate limiting with burst allowances, and comprehensive structured audit logging. A follow-up penetration test 3 months after the rebuild found zero critical or high-severity findings."
Critical Authorisation Regression Caught Before Go-Live — IRDAI Audit Passed, Zero Compliance Gaps
"During migration of a 15-year-old policy management monolith handling 2.3 million active policy records, ZecurX identified a critical authorisation regression in the claims processing microservice — a decomposition decision had inadvertently made claims approval accessible to policy administrators who lacked that permission in the monolith. The regression was identified in ZecurX's parallel security testing before the service went live. Post-migration OWASP ASVS assessment confirmed zero security regression against the baseline. The IRDAI regulatory audit of the migrated system found no compliance gaps."
Native Expertise Across the Full Stack
Development expertise across every major platform, framework, and deployment environment.
Frontend & Mobile
- ◉React, Next.js, Vue.js, Angular (SPA/SSR)
- ◉iOS (Swift, Objective-C, SwiftUI)
- ◉Android (Kotlin, Java, Jetpack Compose)
- ◉React Native and Flutter (cross-platform)
- ◉Progressive Web Applications (PWA)
- ◉Electron desktop application security
Backend & API
- ◉Node.js / TypeScript, Python (FastAPI, Django)
- ◉Go, Java (Spring Boot), Ruby on Rails
- ◉GraphQL (Apollo, Hasura), REST, gRPC
- ◉PostgreSQL, MySQL, MongoDB, Redis
- ◉Microservices and serverless architectures
- ◉AWS, GCP, Azure native services
AI & Security Tooling
- ◉LangChain, LlamaIndex, AutoGen (agent frameworks)
- ◉OpenAI, Anthropic, Google Gemini APIs
- ◉Vector databases (Pinecone, ChromaDB, pgvector)
- ◉SAST: Semgrep, SonarQube, CodeQL
- ◉DAST: OWASP ZAP, Burp Suite integration
- ◉SCA: Snyk, Dependabot, OWASP Dependency-Check
Regulatory Alignment
Every application built by ZecurX is designed to satisfy the security requirements of your regulators, auditors, and enterprise customers.
Application Security Standards
- ◉OWASP Application Security Verification Standard (ASVS) 4.0 — full Level 1/2/3 coverage
- ◉OWASP API Security Top 10 (2023) — all 10 vulnerability classes addressed in API design
- ◉OWASP Mobile Application Security Verification Standard (MASVS) — L1 and L2 for iOS/Android
- ◉OWASP Top 10 (2021) — eliminated by design, not patched after discovery
- ◉OWASP LLM Application Security Top 10 — for AI product development engagements
- ◉NIST Secure Software Development Framework (SSDF) — SP 800-218 aligned development practices
Regulatory & Compliance Alignment
- ◉CERT-In Security Audit compliance — applications built to satisfy empanelled auditor requirements
- ◉RBI Digital Banking Security Controls — mobile banking and payment application standards
- ◉IRDAI IT and cybersecurity guidelines — insurance sector application security requirements
- ◉PCI-DSS v4.0 Requirements 6 (secure development) and 11 (security testing)
- ◉DPDPA 2023 — personal data handling, consent collection, and data subject rights implementation
- ◉EU AI Act — high-risk AI system requirements for AI product development engagements
Structured to Match Your Development Methodology
Commercial structures designed to match your team structure, methodology, and delivery timeline.
Full Product Build
End-to-end secure application development — ZecurX designs, builds, and delivers the complete application with security embedded throughout. Fixed scope and timeline with milestone-based delivery. Includes security architecture, full SDLC security integration, security documentation package, and post-delivery penetration test. Ideal for greenfield products where security is a differentiator.
Embedded Security Engineering
ZecurX security engineers embedded in your existing development team — participating in sprint planning, conducting security code review in pull requests, owning the security backlog, and mentoring your developers in secure coding practices. Retainer-based monthly engagement. Ideal for product companies with strong engineering teams that need security expertise added to each sprint.
Architecture Review & Design
Focused security architecture engagement — threat modelling, security architecture review, and security requirements definition for a new product or major feature. 2–4 week fixed-scope engagement. Deliverable: formal security architecture document with threat model, DFDs, trust boundary map, and security requirements specification. Ideal for products at the design stage before Sprint 1.
Security Modernisation Sprint
Targeted security improvement for existing applications — addressing a penetration test remediation backlog, implementing a missing security control layer, or conducting a focused OWASP ASVS gap remediation. Fixed scope and timeline. Ideal for applications with identified security debt that needs structured remediation before a compliance audit or enterprise customer requirement.
Build software that your penetration tester cannot break.
Request a complimentary Secure Architecture Assessment — a 45-minute session with a ZecurX senior security engineer who will review your current application architecture, identify the highest-risk security gaps, and outline what a security-first build or hardening programme would deliver.