What is the impact of poor software development practices?

Poor software development practices can significantly compromise the security and integrity of software applications. When developers do not adhere to established best practices, such as proper code reviews, testing procedures, and secure coding standards, they may inadvertently introduce vulnerabilities into the software. These vulnerabilities can manifest in various forms, such as buffer overflows, SQL injection flaws, or cross-site scripting (XSS) issues, which attackers can exploit to gain unauthorized access, manipulate data, or disrupt services.

In contrast, the other choices suggest positive outcomes that are not typically associated with poor practices. Faster applications may result from quick fixes and shortcuts, but such speed often comes at the cost of security and reliability. Better user experience typically arises from thoughtful design and rigorous testing, not from careless or hasty development. Additionally, while poor practices can sometimes appear to reduce costs in the short term, they ultimately lead to increased maintenance costs due to the need for extensive debugging, patching vulnerabilities, and possibly rebuilding the software entirely. Hence, the most accurate reflection of the consequences of poor software development practices is that they can introduce vulnerabilities.