TL;DR
As a solo founder, security felt impossible. Every article listed 50 things I was doing wrong. Every checklist made me feel like a failure. I nearly decided to just accept the risk. What saved me was realizing I didn't need perfect security. I needed good-enough security, implemented incrementally.
The Overwhelm
I'd just shipped my first SaaS. A few paying customers. Things were working. Then I read an article about security best practices.
The article listed everything I should be doing:
- Web Application Firewall
- DDoS protection
- Security headers (all 12 of them)
- CSP policies
- Rate limiting on every endpoint
- Penetration testing
- SOC 2 compliance
- Regular security audits
- Incident response plans
- And 40 more items...
I was doing none of these things. I felt like a fraud. How could I accept money from customers when my security was this bad?
The Spiral
I started trying to implement everything at once. I'd spend a day on security headers, get frustrated, abandon it, move to rate limiting, get confused, give up, try something else.
Nothing got finished. Everything felt incomplete. The more I learned, the more I realized I didn't know.
"Maybe I should just accept that my app will get hacked eventually. Maybe I should shut down before someone gets hurt. Maybe I'm not cut out for this."
I was seriously considering giving up. Not on security. On the whole project.
The Breaking Point
The breaking point came at 2 AM. I was reading about OWASP Top 10 for the fifth time, still not understanding how to actually implement fixes. I had tears in my eyes from frustration and exhaustion.
I closed my laptop and asked myself a question: "What's the most likely way my app actually gets compromised?"
Not the theoretical attacks from security articles. The actual, realistic threats to my specific application.
The answer was clear:
- Exposed API keys in my code
- Missing database access controls
- SQL injection in my search feature
Three things. Not fifty. Three.
The Shift
I decided to ignore everything else and fix those three things properly. It took a weekend. By Monday, the most likely attack vectors were closed.
Then I asked the question again: "What's the next most likely way my app gets compromised?"
I fixed that. Then the next thing. Then the next.
Over three months, working on security for just a few hours each week, I addressed the top 15 most realistic threats to my application. Not all 50 items from the checklist. Just the ones that actually mattered for my situation.
The realization: Perfect security is impossible. Good-enough security is achievable. The goal isn't to be unhackable. It's to not be the easiest target. Fix the obvious stuff, and most attackers move on to easier prey.
What I Actually Did
Here's my actual priority list, in order:
- Week 1: Moved all secrets to environment variables
- Week 2: Enabled Supabase RLS on all tables
- Week 3: Fixed SQL injection (used parameterized queries)
- Week 4: Added authentication checks to API routes
- Month 2: Added rate limiting to auth endpoints
- Month 2: Set up basic security headers
- Month 3: Added input validation
- Month 3: Enabled HTTPS enforcement
That's it. Eight focused improvements over three months. Not glamorous. Not complete. But dramatically better than doing nothing while paralyzed by trying to do everything.
What I Learned
Checklists Are Aspirational
Those 50-item security checklists aren't meant to be done in a weekend. They're reference documents for mature organizations. For a solo founder, they're a roadmap, not a deadline.
Start With Your Specific Risks
Not all threats are equal. A solo SaaS handling email addresses has different priorities than a fintech processing payments. Focus on what could actually hurt you.
Progress Beats Perfection
Fixing three things this month is better than planning to fix everything "someday." Small improvements compound.
Good Enough Is Good Enough
You don't need enterprise-grade security for a bootstrapped project with 50 customers. Match your security investment to your actual risk and resources.
For Other Overwhelmed Founders
If you're where I was, feeling like security is impossible and maybe you should just give up:
- It's okay to not know everything. Security is a specialty. You don't need to become an expert overnight.
- Start with one thing. Pick the most obvious vulnerability in your app and fix it. Just one.
- Progress is progress. Your app after one security improvement is safer than before. That matters.
- Ask for help. Security communities are often helpful to newcomers. Don't be afraid to ask questions.
I still don't have SOC 2. I still haven't done a formal penetration test. But my app is dramatically more secure than it was, and I got there without burning out.
Where should I start with security as a solo founder?
Start with: secrets in environment variables, database access controls, authentication on API routes, and input validation. These cover the most common attack vectors for web applications.
How much time should I spend on security?
Start with 2-4 hours per week. Focus on one improvement at a time. Consistency beats intensity. Small regular investments add up faster than sporadic all-nighters.
Do I need enterprise security for a small project?
No. Match your security investment to your risk. A side project with no sensitive data has different needs than a healthcare application. Be realistic about your threat model.
What if I can't fix everything?
You can't. No one can. Security is risk management, not risk elimination. Fix the most likely and most impactful issues first. Accept that some residual risk will always exist.