OWASP Top 10 2026

OWASP Top 10 2026 Overview

The OWASP Top 10 represents the most critical web application security risks. The 2026 edition introduces several new categories reflecting the evolving threat landscape.

Updated Categories

A01: Broken Access Control

Access control failures remain the top risk. Modern applications must enforce server-side checks:

// Server-side access control middleware

function requireRole(...roles) {

return (req, res, next) => {

if (!req.user || !roles.includes(req.user.role)) {

// Log the attempt

securityLog.warn("Unauthorized access attempt", {

user: req.user?.id,

path: req.path,

ip: req.ip

});

return res.status(403).json({ error: "Insufficient permissions" });

}

next();

};

}

// Usage

app.get("/api/admin/users", requireRole("admin"), adminController.getUsers);

A02: Cryptographic Failures

Weak cryptography is increasingly exploited. Use modern algorithms:

from cryptography.hazmat.primitives.ciphers.aead import AESGCM

import os

def encrypt_data(data, key):

aesgcm = AESGCM(key)

nonce = os.urandom(12)

ciphertext = aesgcm.encrypt(nonce, data.encode(), None)

return nonce + ciphertext

def decrypt_data(encrypted, key):

aesgcm = AESGCM(key)

nonce = encrypted[:12]

ciphertext = encrypted[12:]

return aesgcm.decrypt(nonce, ciphertext, None).decode()

A03: Injection

Injection remains prevalent. Parameterized queries are mandatory:

Secure: Parameterized query

def find_user(email):

query = "SELECT * FROM users WHERE email = $1"

return db.execute(query, [email])

Also secure: ORM abstraction

def find_user_safe(email):

return User.query.filter_by(email=email).first()

A04: Insecure Design

A new emphasis on design-level flaws:

threat_modeling_checklist:

\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- Are trust boundaries defined?

\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- Is there a data flow diagram?

\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- Are failure modes handled?

\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- Is there rate limiting on auth endpoints?

\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- Are security controls centralized?

A07: Identification and Authentication Failures

Passwordless and MFA are now expected baselines:

// WebAuthn registration

async function registerPasskey(userId) {

const credential = await navigator.credentials.create({

publicKey: {

challenge: new Uint8Array(32),

rp: { name: "Example Corp" },

user: {

id: new TextEncoder().encode(userId),

name: userId,

displayName: userId

},

pubKeyCredParams: [{ alg: -7, type: "public-key" }]

}

});

return credential;

}

A08: Software and Data Integrity Failures

CI/CD pipeline security and supply chain attacks:

Supply chain security checks

supply_chain_checks:

\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- Verify package signatures

\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- Scan dependencies for known vulnerabilities

\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- Pin dependency versions

\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- Use private registries for verified packages

\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- Sign all releases with cosign

Testing Approaches

Modern testing combines automation and manual review:

def security_test_suite():

results = []

1\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\. Automated DAST

results.extend(run_dast_scan("https://staging.example.com"))

2\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\. SAST scan

results.extend(run_sast_scan("./src"))

3\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\. Dependency check

results.extend(run_dependency_check("./package.json"))

4\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\. API fuzzing

results.extend(api_fuzz("https://staging.example.com/api"))

return analyze_results(results)

Conclusion

The OWASP Top 10 2026 reflects the maturing security landscape. Broken access control remains king, but supply chain security and design flaws have rightfully gained prominence. Adapt your testing approach to cover all categories and integrate security throughout the development lifecycle.