1. Introduction

The goal of this tutorial is to teach you how to secure your Laravel applications. We'll cover Laravel's built-in security features, as well as some additional techniques to further strengthen your application's security.

By the end of this tutorial, you will learn how to:

• Use Laravel's built-in security features
• Implement additional security measures
• Write secure code and avoid common security pitfalls

Prerequisites:
Basic understanding of PHP and Laravel framework.

2. Step-by-Step Guide

Laravel is designed with security in mind, and it includes several built-in features to protect your application. However, it's important to understand these features and how to use them properly to ensure your application is secure.

2.1 CSRF Protection

Laravel includes built-in protection against Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF). It's implemented by adding @csrf directive in your forms, which adds a CSRF token to your form.

<form method="POST" action="/profile">
    @csrf
    ...
</form>

2.2 SQL Injection Protection

Laravel's query builder uses PDO parameter binding to prevent SQL injection attacks. When you use the Query Builder or Eloquent ORM, your queries are automatically secure.

// Secure: Parameters are properly escaped
$users = DB::table('users')->where('name', '=', $name)->get();

2.3 Password Hashing

Never store passwords in plain text. Laravel provides Hash facade which you can use to hash your passwords before storing them in the database.

// Hash a password before storing it
$hashedPassword = Hash::make($request->password);

3. Code Examples

Let's see more examples of writing secure code in Laravel.

3.1 Using Prepared Statements

Prepared statements are a way to write SQL queries safely, without risking SQL injection attacks.

// Get the user's details securely
$user = DB::select('SELECT * FROM users WHERE name = :name', ['name' => $name]);

3.2 Protecting Routes

You can protect your routes by using middleware. For example, you can use the 'auth' middleware to ensure only authenticated users can access certain routes.

// Only authenticated users can access this route
Route::get('dashboard', function () {
    // Your code here
})->middleware('auth');

4. Summary

In this tutorial, you have learned how to secure your Laravel applications. We covered CSRF protection, SQL injection protection, password hashing, prepared statements, and route protection.

For further learning, I recommend studying Laravel's documentation on security, which provides more in-depth information.

5. Practice Exercises

1. Exercise 1: Create a registration form with CSRF protection.
   Solution: Your form should include the @csrf directive.

2. Exercise 2: Use the Hash facade to hash passwords before storing them in the database.
   Solution: Use Hash::make($password) to hash the password.

3. Exercise 3: Protect a route using the 'auth' middleware.
   Solution: Add ->middleware('auth') to your route.

Remember, the key to secure coding is understanding the risks and knowing how to mitigate them. Keep learning and practicing, and you'll get better over time.