The Complete Lovable Security Guide: Protecting Your AI-Built App
Lovable makes it incredibly easy to build beautiful, functional apps with AI. But before you launch to real users, you need to ensure your app is secure. This guide covers everything you need to know.
What We'll Cover
- Understanding Lovable's Architecture
- Supabase Database Security
- API Key Management
- Authentication Security
- Security Headers Configuration
- Pre-Launch Security Checklist
Understanding Lovable's Architecture
Lovable apps typically use a modern stack that includes React for the frontend, Supabase for the database and authentication, and Vercel for hosting. Understanding this architecture is crucial for securing your app.
The key security consideration is that your Supabase anon key is always public. This is by design—it allows your frontend to communicate with Supabase. The security comes from properly configuring Row Level Security (RLS) policies.
Important to Understand
The Supabase anon key visible in your code is supposed to be public. Security is enforced through RLS policies, not by hiding this key.
Supabase Database Security
This is where most Lovable apps fail security audits. AI-generated code often creates database tables without enabling Row Level Security, leaving all your data exposed.
Step 1: Enable RLS on All Tables
Go to your Supabase dashboard, navigate to Database → Tables, and ensure RLS is enabled for every table:
-- Enable RLS on your tables
ALTER TABLE profiles ENABLE ROW LEVEL SECURITY;
ALTER TABLE posts ENABLE ROW LEVEL SECURITY;
ALTER TABLE comments ENABLE ROW LEVEL SECURITY;
Step 2: Create Appropriate Policies
Policies define who can do what with your data. Here are common patterns:
-- Users can only read their own profile
CREATE POLICY "Users can view own profile"
ON profiles FOR SELECT
USING (auth.uid() = user_id);
-- Users can only update their own profile
CREATE POLICY "Users can update own profile"
ON profiles FOR UPDATE
USING (auth.uid() = user_id);
Step 3: Test Your Policies
- Log out of your app and try to access data via the browser console
- Create a second test account and verify users can't see each other's data
- Use VAS to automatically test for data exposure
API Key Management
Lovable apps often integrate with external services like OpenAI, Stripe, or SendGrid. Managing these API keys securely is critical.
Never Do This
const apiKey = "sk-proj-abc123..."
Hardcoded keys in your frontend are visible to anyone using DevTools.
The Right Way to Handle API Keys
Use Supabase Edge Functions
Move API calls to Edge Functions where secrets stay server-side
Store keys in Supabase Vault
Use Supabase's built-in secrets management
Use environment variables
Set secrets in Vercel/hosting dashboard, never in code
Authentication Security
Lovable typically uses Supabase Auth, which is secure by default. However, there are still configuration mistakes to avoid:
- Enable email confirmation – Prevents fake account creation
- Set password requirements – Enforce minimum length and complexity
- Configure redirect URLs – Only allow your own domains
- Enable rate limiting – Prevent brute force attacks
Security Headers Configuration
Add these security headers to protect against common web vulnerabilities:
// vercel.json
{
"headers": [{
"source": "/(.*).",
"headers": [
{ "key": "X-Frame-Options", "value": "DENY" },
{ "key": "X-Content-Type-Options", "value": "nosniff" },
{ "key": "Referrer-Policy", "value": "strict-origin-when-cross-origin" }
]
}]
}
Pre-Launch Security Checklist
Automate Your Security Checks
VAS automatically scans your Lovable app for all these vulnerabilities and more. Get a comprehensive security report with fixes you can paste directly into your AI assistant.