AI code assistants can significantly speed up development, but they need guidance to produce **secure** and robust code. This guide explains how to create custom instructions (e.g. [GitHub Copilot instructions file](https://docs.github.com/en/copilot/how-tos/custom-instructions/adding-repository-custom-instructions-for-github-copilot), [Cline instructions file](https://docs.cline.bot/enterprise-solutions/custom-instructions), [Cursor rules](https://docs.cursor.com/context/rules), [Claude markdown](https://docs.anthropic.com/en/docs/claude-code/common-workflows#create-an-effective-claude-md-file), etc.) that ensure the AI assistant accounts for application code security, supply chain safety, and platform or language-specific considerations and to embed a "security conscience" into the tool. In practice, this means fewer vulnerabilities making it into your codebase. Remember that these instructions should be kept concise, specific, and actionable – the goal is to influence the AI's behaviour without overwhelming it. [[1]](#1)
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