OWASP

OWASP, now expanded as the Open Worldwide Application Security Project, is an international nonprofit software-security community whose work focuses on improving the security of web applications, application programming interfaces, mobile software, system software, cloud-connected services, and emerging technologies. Its public-facing work is organized around open projects, volunteer chapters, conferences, educational materials, standards, testing tools, and risk guidance rather than around a conventional commercial product portfolio. Mark Curphey began the project on September 9, 2001. The initiative developed as an online and community-led effort to make practical application-security knowledge more accessible to developers, testers, architects, security professionals, educators, and organizations. Its best-known output is the OWASP Top 10, a regularly updated risk-awareness document that identifies important categories of application-security weaknesses. The project has become a common reference point in software-development programs, security training, procurement requirements, standards work, and compliance discussions. Its influence extends beyond the OWASP community because outside organizations and security frameworks frequently cite or align with the Top 10. The OWASP Foundation, a United States 501(c)(3) nonprofit established in 2004, provides infrastructure and organizational support for the project. OWASP also established a European nonprofit presence, OWASP Europe VZW, in 2011. The broader OWASP model allows contributors to create and maintain projects under an open community structure, with local chapters and global initiatives operating alongside the foundation. This has enabled OWASP to publish material ranging from introductory developer guidance to formal verification standards and software-assurance maturity models. Its principal resources include the OWASP Top 10, the Application Security Verification Standard, the Software Assurance Maturity Model, the OWASP Testing Guide, the Code Review Guide, and incident-response guidance. OWASP also maintains or supports practical tools and deliberately vulnerable applications used for education and testing. OWASP ZAP is a prominent open-source web-application penetration-testing tool, while WebGoat is an intentionally insecure application designed to teach secure programming and vulnerability analysis. The organization has progressively widened its scope beyond traditional web applications. Projects and guidance address API security, automated threats against web applications, application-security pipelines, XML security, mobile and connected technologies, and the security implications of artificial intelligence. In February 2023, the organization was reported to have approved a name change from Open Web Application Security Project to Open Worldwide Application Security Project, reflecting this broader remit. In May 2023, the OWASP Generative AI Security Project was launched to document important risks associated with large language models and related systems. OWASP's current role is best understood as that of an open security knowledge and collaboration platform supported by a nonprofit foundation. It does not operate like a single-vendor security company: its value lies in community-maintained knowledge, freely available standards and guidance, open-source software, professional events, and a global network of practitioners. Leadership and project ownership can vary over time, and many initiatives are maintained by volunteers and contributors rather than by a single centralized product organization.

OWASP began on September 9, 2001, when Mark Curphey started an initiative intended to improve the availability of practical information about web-application security. It developed as an online community rather than as a conventional software vendor. The project encouraged practitioners to share guidance, testing methods, educational material, and open-source software that could help organizations identify and reduce application vulnerabilities. A major early milestone was the creation of the OWASP Top 10, first published in 2003. The list organized significant application-security risks into a concise awareness document for developers, testers, managers, and procurement teams. Over time, it became one of the organization's most recognizable publications and was referenced by outside standards, industry programs, and government-related security guidance. Its influence helped establish OWASP as a common vocabulary for discussing application-security weaknesses. The OWASP Foundation was formed in the United States in 2004 as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. The foundation supports the technical and administrative infrastructure behind OWASP projects, events, chapters, and publications. The organization also created a European nonprofit structure, OWASP Europe VZW, in Belgium in 2011. These structures support a distributed international community while preserving the project's open and volunteer-oriented character. Jeff Williams served as a volunteer chair from late 2003 through September 2011. Matt Konda was identified as chair of the board as of 2015. OWASP's governance and project leadership have otherwise evolved through its foundation, boards, project leaders, local chapters, and contributors. Because many initiatives are community maintained, the organization has never been defined solely by a single commercial product or executive team. Its portfolio expanded from general web-application guidance into formal standards, maturity models, testing resources, secure-development education, and practical tools. The Application Security Verification Standard provides a structured basis for verifying application-security controls. The Software Assurance Maturity Model addresses the development and management of software-assurance programs. The Testing Guide and Code Review Guide provide methodological support for security testing and review activities. OWASP ZAP became a prominent open-source tool for web-application testing, while WebGoat supplied a deliberately vulnerable environment for hands-on learning. OWASP also developed projects addressing APIs, automated threats, application-security pipelines, XML security, mobile and connected technologies, and other areas related to software assurance. As software became more distributed and AI systems became more prominent, the organization broadened its remit. In 2023, it was reported that the board had approved replacing the word Web with Worldwide in the organization's name. That year, OWASP also began a Generative AI Security Project intended to identify and explain important risks involving large language models. Today, OWASP operates as a global nonprofit community and knowledge platform. Its principal contribution is the combination of freely available guidance, open-source tools, standards, educational projects, conferences, and local practitioner networks. The organization remains active, but individual projects, editions, leaders, and publication schedules can change independently within the wider foundation structure.

• 2023

  Name broadened to Open Worldwide Application Security Project

  [1]OWASPen.wikipedia.org

  The organization was reported to have changed its formal expansion from Open Web Application Security Project to Open Worldwide Application Security Project.

• 2023

  Generative AI Security Project launched

  [1]OWASPen.wikipedia.org

  OWASP began a project focused on security risks associated with generative AI and large language models.

• 2011

  European nonprofit registered

  [1]OWASPen.wikipedia.org

  OWASP Europe VZW was registered in Belgium.

• 2004

  OWASP Foundation established

  [1]OWASPen.wikipedia.org

  The United States 501(c)(3) OWASP Foundation was established to support OWASP infrastructure and projects.

• 2003

  First OWASP Top 10 published

  [1]OWASPen.wikipedia.org

  OWASP introduced its Top 10 risk list, which became a widely used application-security awareness reference.

• 2001

  OWASP founded

  [1]OWASPen.wikipedia.org

  Mark Curphey started the OWASP initiative on September 9, 2001.

An open, community-led and globally oriented source of practical application-security knowledge, standards, education, and tools.

• Risk guidance · 2003

  OWASP Top 10

  A periodically updated list of major application-security risk categories. It is designed as an awareness and communication resource for developers, security teams, managers, educators, and organizations establishing secure-development priorities. The list is frequently used as a starting point for application-security programs and is referenced by external standards and industry guidance.

• Security standard

  OWASP Application Security Verification Standard

  A structured standard for defining and verifying application-security requirements. ASVS gives teams a more detailed basis for security architecture, development, testing, procurement, and assurance than a high-level risk list, and can be adapted to different application types and assurance needs.

• Open-source security tool

  OWASP ZAP

  An open-source web-application security testing and penetration-testing tool. ZAP is intended to help security professionals and developers inspect, attack, and assess web applications during testing and development workflows.

• Security education

  WebGoat

  A deliberately insecure web application used as a hands-on learning environment. It allows users to study common web vulnerabilities and secure programming practices in a controlled setting rather than through testing against production systems.

• Maturity model

  OWASP Software Assurance Maturity Model

  A framework for assessing and improving an organization's software-assurance practices. SAMM helps organizations evaluate governance, construction, verification, and related activities and use the results to plan a progressive security-improvement program.

• Testing guidance

  OWASP Testing Guide

  A practical body of guidance for evaluating the security of web applications. It addresses testing approaches and techniques intended to support repeatable assessment by application-security testers and development teams.

• AI security guidance · 2023

  OWASP Generative AI Security Project

  An initiative focused on documenting security risks associated with generative artificial intelligence and large language model systems. It represents OWASP's expansion into emerging software and AI security concerns.

• 2023

  Broaden the organization's name and remitStrategy

  Background

  OWASP's projects had expanded beyond traditional web applications into APIs, mobile and connected technologies, software assurance, and emerging AI systems.

  Action taken

  The board was reported to have approved changing the expansion from Open Web Application Security Project to Open Worldwide Application Security Project.

  Aftermath

  The new wording reflected a broader worldwide and technology-neutral scope while retaining the OWASP acronym.

  Source

• 2023

  Launch the Generative AI Security ProjectProduct launch

  Background

  The rapid adoption of generative AI and large language models created new application and model-security questions not fully covered by traditional web-security guidance.

  Action taken

  OWASP started a project to document critical security risks associated with generative AI and large language models.

  Aftermath

  The initiative extended OWASP's public guidance and project portfolio into AI security.

  Source

1. 1OWASPen.wikipedia.org
2. 2OWASP official websiteowasp.org