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Secure code review

Secure Code Review Study Plan

Structured roadmap for mastering secure code review methodology, vulnerability patterns, and tool-assisted analysis.

This plan helps you build practical secure code review skills across manual review strategy, vulnerability detection, repeatable checklists, and automation support.

Expected pace

8 weeks

Mix manual practice with tool-assisted review.

Focus areas

Understand secure review methodology end to end.
Spot common vulnerabilities from code perspective.
Use checklists to make reviews consistent.
Combine manual review with SAST tooling.

In short

Secure code review differs from functional review.
Use top-down and bottom-up review strategies together.
Map findings to OWASP Top 10 and CWE.
Treat tools as accelerators, not replacements.
Business logic flaws still require human judgment.
Code Review FundamentalsCommon Vulnerabilities in CodeProcess and ChecklistsTools and AutomationResources

Section 1

Code Review Fundamentals

2 weeks

Learn why secure code review matters and how to approach code systematically.

Week 1-2: The Basics

Difference between functional review and security review.
Manual versus automated review and when each helps most.
Top-down strategy: start from entry points and high-level logic.
Bottom-up strategy: start from sensitive sinks and dangerous functions.
Secure coding principles: input validation, output encoding, least privilege, defense in depth.
Practice: review small PRs and label findings by severity and exploitability.

Section 2

Common Vulnerabilities in Code

2 weeks

Train pattern recognition for high-impact vulnerability classes in real code.

Week 3-4: Spotting Bugs

Injection risks: SQL injection, command injection, unsafe eval/exec usage.
Broken authentication: hardcoded credentials, weak session management.
Cross-site scripting from missing context-aware output encoding.
Insecure deserialization and unsafe object handling.
Java issues: deserialization and XXE patterns.
Python issues: pickle abuse, eval usage, Jinja2 SSTI.
JavaScript or Node.js issues: prototype pollution and eval usage.
Practice: map each finding to OWASP Top 10 category and CWE.

Section 3

Process and Checklists

2 weeks

Use repeatable review process and checklists to reduce misses and reviewer drift.

Week 5-6: Systematic Review

Read OWASP Secure Code Review Guide methodology.
Authentication and authorization checklist items.
Data validation checklist items.
Error handling and logging checklist items.
Cryptography checklist: weak algorithms and hardcoded keys.
Business logic review: race conditions, order-of-operations flaws, price manipulation.
Practice: build personal checklist template for your team stack.

Section 4

Tools and Automation

2 weeks

Boost review speed and coverage using SAST and IDE tooling while understanding limits.

Week 7-8: SAST and IDE Plugins

SonarQube setup basics and rule configuration.
Semgrep basics and custom rule writing (recommended).
CodeQL basics: query code as data.
IDE plugins such as Snyk and SonarLint.
False positives and false negatives handling.
Why manual review remains essential for logic bugs.
Practice: compare tool findings with manual findings on same codebase.