Launch Ready cyber security Checklist for AI-built SaaS app: Ready for first 100 users in bootstrapped SaaS?.

Launch Ready cyber security Checklist for AI-built SaaS app: Ready for first 100 users in bootstrapped SaaS?

"Ready" does not mean "it works on my laptop." For a bootstrapped AI-built SaaS app, ready means a stranger can sign up, verify email, log in, use the core workflow, and you can survive the first 100 users without exposing secrets, breaking DNS, or drowning in support tickets.

I would define launch-ready as this:

• No exposed API keys, private tokens, or admin credentials in code, logs, or client-side bundles.
• Domain, email, and SSL are correct across root domain and subdomains.
• Signup, login, password reset, and email delivery work end to end.
• Production deploys are repeatable and rollback is possible.
• Monitoring catches downtime before users do.
• Basic abuse controls exist: rate limiting, CORS rules, auth checks, and Cloudflare protection.
• The app can handle the first 100 users without obvious failure modes like broken redirects, email rejection, or public data leaks.

If any of those are missing, you do not have a launch problem. You have a trust problem. One breach, one broken onboarding flow, or one dead inbox can burn your early ad spend and create support load before you even get product-market signal.

Quick Scorecard

| Check | Pass criteria | Why it matters | What breaks if it fails | |---|---|---|---| | Domain setup | Root domain and www resolve correctly with 301 redirects | Prevents duplicate content and trust issues | Users land on wrong host or see certificate warnings | | SSL/TLS | HTTPS active on all public routes with no mixed content | Protects logins and sessions | Browser warnings, blocked cookies, failed auth | | Email auth | SPF, DKIM, and DMARC all pass | Improves deliverability | Password resets and onboarding emails hit spam | | Secrets handling | Zero secrets in client code or repo history | Stops immediate compromise | API abuse, data theft, billing fraud | | Auth controls | No auth bypasses on private routes or APIs | Protects customer data | Unauthorized access to accounts or records | | Rate limiting | Login, signup, reset password, and API endpoints rate limited | Reduces abuse and brute force risk | Credential stuffing and bot signups | | CORS policy | Only trusted origins allowed for browser requests | Prevents cross-site abuse | Data exposure through permissive browser access | | Monitoring | Uptime alerts + error tracking + log visibility enabled | Detects outages fast enough to act | Silent downtime and lost conversions | | Deployment safety | Production deploy is repeatable with rollback path | Reduces release risk | Broken releases stay live longer | | Backup/recovery | Backups exist and restore is tested once | Limits blast radius of mistakes | Permanent data loss after bad deploy or deletion |

The Checks I Would Run First

1) Secret exposure check

Signal: I look for any API keys in `.env`, frontend bundles, build logs, CI output, Git history, or pasted into prompt-based tools. For an AI-built SaaS app, this is the most common launch-killer.

Tool or method: I scan the repo with secret scanners like Gitleaks or TruffleHog. I also inspect deployed JS bundles in the browser to confirm no private values are shipped to the client.

Fix path: Move all secrets to server-side environment variables only. Rotate anything already exposed. If a key touched Git history or was sent to a browser bundle once, I assume it is compromised until rotated.

2) Authentication and authorization check

Signal: I test whether a logged-out user can hit private endpoints directly. Then I test whether one user can read another user's data by changing IDs in URLs or requests.

Tool or method: I use Postman or curl against every sensitive route. I also do basic ID tampering against account pages, invoices, projects, files, and admin panels.

Fix path: Enforce authorization on every request server-side. Do not rely on hidden buttons or frontend route guards. If the backend trusts the client too much today, that is where the leak will happen tomorrow.

3) Email deliverability check

Signal: Signup verification emails arrive within 60 seconds and do not land in spam for major providers like Gmail and Outlook. SPF/DKIM/DMARC must all pass.

Tool or method: I test with real inboxes and inspect headers using tools like MXToolbox. I also check whether your sender domain matches your From address.

Fix path: Set SPF to allow only your mail provider. Enable DKIM signing. Add a DMARC policy with reporting so you can see spoofing attempts. Without this setup, your onboarding flow can fail even if the app itself is fine.

4) CORS and browser access check

Signal: Browser requests from random origins are blocked unless explicitly allowed. Preflight requests should not open up your APIs to every website on the internet.

Tool or method: I inspect network calls from Chrome DevTools and try cross-origin requests from a simple test page on another domain.

Fix path: Restrict CORS to known production domains only. Never use `*` when credentials are involved. If your app uses cookies for auth, be strict about origin handling because permissive CORS turns other sites into attack surfaces.

5) Production deployment and rollback check

Signal: A deploy either succeeds cleanly or fails safely. I want one command or one pipeline that gets me back to known-good state fast.

Tool or method: I review CI/CD config plus the last two deploys. Then I simulate a rollback path so I know how long recovery takes if a release breaks login at 9 pm.

Fix path: Use tagged releases with environment separation between staging and production. Keep database migrations backward compatible where possible. If rollback takes manual firefighting now, it will take longer under pressure later.

6) Monitoring and alerting check

Signal: You know when uptime drops below target and when error rates spike above normal. For first-launch SaaS traffic, I want alerts within 5 minutes of failure detection.

Tool or method: I verify uptime monitoring like UptimeRobot or Better Stack plus application error tracking such as Sentry. Then I confirm someone actually receives alerts by email or Slack.

Fix path: Monitor homepage uptime, login success rate, API errors, queue failures if relevant, and SSL expiry dates. Without this layer you are blind during your highest-risk week: launch week.

SPF: v=spf1 include:_spf.yourprovider.com -all
DKIM: enabled at provider level
DMARC: v=DMARC1; p=quarantine; rua=mailto:dmarc@yourdomain.com

Red Flags That Need a Senior Engineer

If you see any of these five issues, I would stop DIY fixes and bring in Launch Ready:

1. You have already exposed at least one secret in GitHub history or client code. 2. Your auth model mixes frontend checks with backend trust decisions. 3. Email sending is inconsistent across providers or lands in spam. 4. DNS changes broke the site once already during setup. 5. You cannot explain how to roll back a bad production release in under 10 minutes.

These are not cosmetic problems. They create launch delays, failed app review if mobile is involved later on, broken onboarding flows now, support load from confused users later today after ad spend starts running.

DIY Fixes You Can Do Today

Before contacting me at https://cal.com/cyprian-aarons/discovery , there are five practical things you can do yourself:

1. Rotate every key you have touched recently

• If it was pasted into chat tools or committed anywhere public by mistake,

rotate it now.

• Treat anything used in local testing as compromised until proven otherwise.

2. Turn on Cloudflare for the domain

• Add DNS records carefully.
• Enable proxying where appropriate.
• Confirm SSL mode is set correctly so users never see certificate errors.

3. Check your public routes

• Visit login,

signup, reset password, dashboard, billing, admin, terms, privacy, sitemap, robots.txt.

• Make sure nothing private is visible without authentication.

4. Test email deliverability

• Send verification,

password reset, welcome email, invite email.

• Confirm they arrive fast enough to support conversion during signup.

5. Set up basic monitoring

• Add uptime checks for homepage,

auth pages, API health endpoint if you have one.

• Add error tracking before traffic starts so failures are visible immediately.

Where Cyprian Takes Over

This is where Launch Ready saves time versus piecemeal fixes.

| Checklist failure | What I fix in Launch Ready | Timeline | |---|---|---| | Broken domain routing | DNS cleanup, redirects from root to www or vice versa as needed | Within first 12 hours | | Missing SSL / mixed content | Cloudflare SSL setup plus asset checks across public pages | Within first 12 hours | | Weak email deliverability | SPF/DKIM/DMARC setup for sender domain alignment | Within first 24 hours | | Exposed secrets risk | Secret audit across codebase, CI, and deployment config; rotate what needs rotating | Within first 24 hours | | Unsafe deployment process | Production deployment hardening plus environment variable review and handover checklist | By hour 36 | | No monitoring / blind spots | Uptime monitoring, error tracking, basic alert routing and verification | By hour 36 | | Cache / DDoS gaps | Cloudflare caching rules, rate limiting basics, DDoS protection settings | By hour 48 |

My recommendation is simple: do not spend three days trying to duct-tape launch infrastructure while hoping no one notices broken emails or an exposed key.

I would make the app production-safe first so your first 100 users become signal instead of incident reports.

The outcome should be concrete:

• zero exposed secrets confirmed,
• SPF/DKIM/DMARC passing,
• HTTPS everywhere,
• uptime alerts live,
• deployment documented,
• handover checklist complete.

That gets you to a point where paid traffic does not immediately waste money on technical failures that should have been fixed before launch.

Delivery Map

References

• https://roadmap.sh/cyber-security
• https://roadmap.sh/api-security-best-practices
• https://roadmap.sh/code-review-best-practices
• https://www.cloudflare.com/learning/security/what-is-ddos/
• https://support.google.com/a/answer/33786?hl=en

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Take the next step

If this is a problem in your product right now, here is what to do next:

• [Use the free Cyprian tools](/tools) - estimate cost, score app risk, check launch readiness, or pick the right service sprint.

• [Book a discovery call](/contact) - I will tell you honestly whether you need a sprint or if you can DIY the next step.

*Written by Cyprian Tinashe Aarons - senior full-stack and AI engineer helping founders rescue, launch, automate, and scale AI-built products.*