Always validate security-related configurations and implementations to ensure they follow established security best practices. This includes verifying authentication token formats, communication protocols, and error handling mechanisms. Key areas to validate: 1. **Authentication tokens**: Use proper Authorization header formats instead of plain tokens. Prefer standard formats like `token ` or `bearer ` over custom implementations. 2. **Communication protocols**: Validate that API URLs use secure HTTPS protocols and warn users when insecure HTTP is detected. 3. **Authentication errors**: Properly handle and propagate authentication failures (401/403 errors) with appropriate error types. Example implementation: ```typescript // Validate secure API URL const apiUrl = config.API_REST_URL; if (apiUrl.startsWith('http://')) { console.warn("You configured the Snyk CLI to use an API URL with an HTTP scheme. This option is insecure and might prevent the Snyk CLI from working correctly."); } // Use proper authentication header format const sessionToken = getAuthHeader(); // Returns "token " format // Handle authentication errors properly try { return await makeAuthenticatedRequest(); } catch (error) { const unauthorized = error.code === 401 || error.code === 403; if (unauthorized) { throw AuthFailedError(error.error, error.code); } } ``` This validation approach prevents security vulnerabilities by catching misconfigurations early and ensuring consistent security practices across the codebase.