Cybersecurity Fundamentals for Developers || Wacre Skill Centre

Course Details

Software Testing
5.0 Reviews

Cybersecurity Fundamentals for Developers

By Dr. Wanjiru Mwangi
03/Jul/2024
0 Students

Course Description

As a developer, you don’t just write features you own security. In today’s threat landscape, a single vulnerability can lead to data breaches, financial loss, and reputational damage. This practical, code-first course equips you with the essential cybersecurity knowledge to build secure applications from the ground up no prior security experience needed.

Why Learn Cybersecurity as a Developer?
Over 80% of breaches involve application-layer flaws like injection, broken authentication, or misconfigurations issues developers can prevent. Companies now expect engineers to “shift left” and embed security into the development lifecycle. Knowing how to write secure code makes you more valuable, employable, and trusted.

What You’ll Learn:

Understand the OWASP Top 10 threats (e.g., SQL injection, XSS, CSRF, SSRF, insecure deserialization)
Write secure code in JavaScript, Python, and Java with real-world examples
Implement proper authentication & session management (password hashing, JWT best practices, MFA)
Safely handle user input, file uploads, and API requests
Configure secure headers, CORS, and CSP to harden web apps
Use dependency scanning tools (like Snyk or npm audit) to manage third-party risks
Apply principle of least privilege in databases and cloud services
Encrypt sensitive data at rest and in transit (TLS, AES, secrets management)
Adopt secure coding standards and integrate security into CI/CD pipelines
Perform basic threat modeling and code reviews for vulnerabilities

Who this course is for:

Web, mobile, and backend developers at any level
Software engineers preparing for technical interviews or certifications
DevOps and SREs expanding their security knowledge
Students building projects who want to avoid common pitfalls
Freelancers and indie hackers protecting their own applications

Course Curriculum

Dr. Wanjiru Mwangi

Senior Lecturer in Computing & Digital Innovation | Bridging Technology and Local Enterprise

Dr. Wanjiru Mwangi is a Senior Lecturer in Computing at the University of Nairobi, specializing in practical, Africa-focused tech education. She teaches Mastering Python for Data Science, Cybersecurity Fundamentals for Developers