Essential Security Checklist for Supabase and Vibe-Coded Apps + bonus prompt

If you’re moving your prototype (especially one built quickly with Supabase, Lovable, Bolt, or similar platforms) toward a production-grade app, security must be your top priority.

Follow these practical steps and use the hands-on audit prompt below to elevate your app’s defenses.

Proven Security Tips

1. Lock Down Your Backend (Supabase/Firebase Policies)

Most vibe-coded apps leave their backend wide open. Anyone who can find your endpoint URL might access or modify sensitive data such as user accounts, subscriptions, or payment info.

How: Don’t rely on default settings. In Supabase, navigate to your Auth Policies and set everything to “deny all” by default. Only permit authenticated users to access their own data.
Why: Even if your frontend looks secure, an exposed backend lets anyone directly access your database.
Learn more: Supabase Row-Level Security Docs

2. Never Trust the Frontend Alone

No-code and rapid-build tools sometimes generate apps that do important checks (like upgrades or edits) only in the UI.

What to do: Always assume users can inspect, alter, and resend requests. Validate every action on the backend: check logged-in status, roles, and permissions.
Why: Frontend logic can easily be bypassed. Without backend validation, anyone could break or exploit your app.

3. Keep Secrets... Secret!

One common mistake is leaking environment variables or keys (accidentally committing them to Git, misconfiguring servers, etc.).

How: Restrict access to env files and secrets, especially if deploying on your own server.
Why: Exposure of these can lead to total compromise of your stack.

4. Leverage Automated Security Audits

Ask AI-powered coding tools or assistants to generate an actionable security audit checklist for your exact stack, then implement and verify each suggested fix.

5. Be Wary of Platform Defaults

After reviewing many apps, open REST endpoints were most prevalent with Lovable (less so with Bolt, which configures Supabase rules by default). Always double-check the security settings, even if your platform claims to “secure by default.”

6. Watch Out for Insecure Client-Side Logic

Cases have surfaced where manipulating local app data (changing user limits/credits in the browser) unlocked premium features or drained resources.

Examples:

In a lead extractor app, manually increasing the “credits” count in the browser allowed full export functions.
In an AI image restoration site, changing profile data locally unlocked all premium features.

If your site lets users edit data (like credits or package names) on the client without server confirmation, they could exploit your resources, potentially running up big bills on APIs like OpenAI, Claude, or fala.ai.

Additional Resources

Comprehensive Platform Security Guide:Lovable Security Documentation
Ask for Security Audit Tasklist:Prompt your AI tool with the audit above, or see community discussions for ideas on how to structure your audit

Bonus: Security Audit Prompt:

Use the following prompt with your favorite AI/automation tool to review and fix security risks:

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Audit my project for security issues: public Supabase endpoints, unsecured API routes, weak or missing access control, and improperly configured auth rules. Specifically:

Check if Supabase tables or RPC functions are publicly accessible without proper Row Level Security (RLS) or role-based permissions.
Confirm that users can’t upgrade their own account privileges or delete/edit other users’ data.
Ensure all write operations (POST, PUT, PATCH, DELETE) are protected by server-side auth and validation, not just client checks.
Identify any hardcoded secrets, misconfigured environment variables, or sensitive data leaks.
Generate a security checklist based on my current stack and suggest immediate high-priority fixes.

Assume I want to go from a vibe-coded prototype to a real production-ready app. Refactor anything risky, and explain what you’re doing as you go.

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Moving fast is great. Shipping recklessly isn’t. Review and tighten your security before scaling to real users. Build trust by safeguarding user data, don’t let “just a prototype” put anyone at risk.

Let’s keep building, but let’s do it safely!

DM me if you have any questions!

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