A Human-Centric Framework For Secure AI-Assisted Code Generation: Embedding Security Heuristics In The Software Synthesis Process
Abstract
The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) has transformed software development by enabling automated code generation through large language models (LLMs). Contemporary AI coding assistants can generate functional software components, accelerate development cycles, and improve programmer productivity. However, growing evidence indicates that AI-generated code frequently contains security vulnerabilities, insecure coding patterns, and implementation flaws that may expose software systems to cyber threats. Existing studies demonstrate that AI-generated code often reproduces insecure practices learned from training data and may fail to adhere to established security standards. Consequently, organizations increasingly face challenges in balancing productivity gains from AI-assisted programming with software security requirements. This study proposes a human-centric framework for secure AI-assisted code generation that embeds security heuristics throughout the software synthesis process. The framework integrates human-in-the-loop validation, security-aware prompt engineering, vulnerability assessment, explainability mechanisms, and iterative feedback loops to improve code quality and security outcomes. A comprehensive review of literature on AI code generation, human-centered AI, software engineering, explainable machine learning, and cybersecurity is conducted to establish the theoretical foundation of the framework. The proposed model emphasizes collaborative intelligence between human developers and AI systems rather than complete automation. Findings indicate that integrating security heuristics with human oversight significantly enhances vulnerability detection, code reliability, and user trust while reducing the likelihood of insecure software deployment. The study contributes a structured conceptual model that supports secure AI adoption in software engineering and identifies future research directions for adaptive, explainable, and security-aware code synthesis systems.