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Computers & Digital Literacy · Grade 9

Secure Software and Data Handling

Learners look at a fictional food pantry's volunteer app from the builder's side. They validate untrusted input with allowlists on the server, apply secure-by-design principles such as least privilege, safe failure and careful error messages, handle data responsibly from collection to deletion, and turn security requirements into concrete test cases.

  • 4 lessons
  • About 115 minutes
  • Secure software and data check: 10 questions
  • Ways to answer: choose an answer, trace code, highlight a text, match pairs, put in order and sort into groups
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What learners will discover

  • Treat all input as untrusted and validate it on the server with allowlist rules for type, length, range, format and allowed values, keeping data separate from commands.
  • Apply secure-by-design principles: least privilege for programs, secure defaults, failing safely, careful error messages, secrets kept out of code and updated dependencies.
  • Handle data responsibly through its lifecycle: classify it, minimize collection, encrypt in transit and at rest, keep sensitive values out of logs, and retain and delete it on purpose.
  • Turn security requirements into test cases, including boundary and invalid inputs, and place security activities in a development lifecycle.

Lessons

  1. All input is untrusted 7 steps4 practiceabout 30 min
  2. Secure by design 6 steps4 practiceabout 25 min
  3. Data from collection to deletion 6 steps4 practiceabout 30 min
  4. Testing security requirements 6 steps3 practiceabout 30 min
  5. Secure software and data check 10 questions at the end

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