Why Software Engineering Still Matters in Web Application Development: The Risks of Vibe Coding

Enjinwi Emmanuel — Thu, 12 Nov 2026 18:18:15 +0000

By Enjiwni Emmanuel
Level 2 Software Engineering Student, CATUC

Introduction

Let's be honest, building a website or web application today is much easier than it used to be. With AI tools like ChatGPT and GitHub Copilot, you can describe what you want, and within a few seconds, you already have some code.

This has made coding easier and has introduced a popular approach called Vibe Coding.

Vibe Coding is basically when someone uses AI to generate code by giving it instructions, without necessarily understanding how the code works.

At first, this sounds like a great idea. You can build a website without spending hours writing code yourself. But have we ever stopped to think about the problems that can come with this?

As Software Engineering students, we need to understand that developing an application is not just about writing code or making a beautiful interface. There are other important things to consider, and that is why Software Engineering is still very important.

What Exactly Is Software Engineering?

In simple terms, Software Engineering is the process of planning, designing, developing, testing and maintaining software.

It is not just about writing lines of code. It involves understanding the problem you want to solve and finding the best way to build a solution.

For example, imagine you are developing a school management system. You need to think about student registration, login pages, databases, user accounts, security and how information will be stored.

You cannot just create a nice-looking dashboard and say the application is complete.

There is a lot happening behind what users see on their screens.

Why Is Software Engineering Important in Web Applications?

Today, web applications are used in almost every part of our daily lives. Schools use them to manage students, banks use them for transactions, and businesses use them to manage their activities.

This means that these applications need to be properly developed.

Here are some reasons why Software Engineering matters:

Security

Security is very important when developing web applications. Think about applications that store student information, passwords or even bank details.

Developers need to make sure that this information is protected. Things like password hashing, input validation and proper user authentication should not be ignored.

Proper Planning

Before starting a project, a developer needs to understand what the application is supposed to do.

Planning helps us organise our work and avoid making unnecessary mistakes during development.

Easy Maintenance

Imagine building an application today and finding it difficult to understand your own code after two months.

That is why writing clean and organised code is important. It makes it easier to correct errors and add new features in the future.

Testing

Just because a website opens and the buttons work does not mean everything is perfect.

Developers need to test their applications to find errors and make sure everything works as expected.

User Experience

An application should not only work well but should also be easy to use. It should be responsive and work properly on different devices, including phones, tablets and computers.

The Problem With Vibe Coding

Now, this is where things get interesting.

I personally think AI is a very useful tool for developers. It can help us understand difficult concepts, solve coding problems and save time.

But the problem comes when we start depending on it for everything.

Imagine asking ChatGPT to build a complete login system using PHP and MySQL. It generates all the code, you copy it, paste it into your project, and everything seems to work.

But do you actually understand how the login system works? Do you know how passwords are stored? Can you explain how the database connection works? What happens if someone tries to access another user's account?

If you cannot answer these questions, then there is a problem.

Some of the dangers of depending too much on Vibe Coding include:

Security Problems

AI-generated code is not always secure. It can contain mistakes or weaknesses that hackers may take advantage of. Using such code without checking it can put users' information at risk.

Lack of Coding Knowledge

Some people can build an entire web application using AI but struggle to explain how it works.

This becomes a problem when something goes wrong and they have no idea how to fix it.

Poor Code Structure

AI can sometimes generate code that works but is not properly organised. When the project becomes bigger, making changes can become difficult.

Hidden Errors

A web application might work perfectly during a simple demonstration but fail when many people start using it or when unexpected information is entered.

Too Much Dependence on AI

When we depend on AI for every little thing, we may stop developing our own problem-solving skills.

We should be using AI to improve our knowledge, not to avoid learning.

What Can Happen When We Ignore Software Engineering?

Let's take a simple example.

Imagine a student develops a school management web application without properly planning the database or setting user permissions.

A student might be able to view another student's private information. Someone might access an administrator's account, or important records might get lost because there is no backup system.

These problems can affect real people, not just the developer.

This is why a web application should not be judged only by how beautiful it looks or how fast it was developed.

What happens behind the scenes matters just as much.

Can We Use AI and Still Practise Software Engineering?

Of course!

I don't think developers should stop using AI. Technology is moving forward, and we should learn how to move with it.

However, we need to know how to use these tools properly.

As students and future developers, we should try to:

Understand the code AI generates before using it.
Learn how databases work instead of depending on AI for everything.
Test our applications regularly.
Pay attention to security.
Learn how to find and correct errors ourselves.
Write code that other developers can easily understand.

There is nothing wrong with using AI to make development faster. The problem is using it without knowing what we are actually building.

Conclusion

Software Engineering is still very important in web application development, even with the introduction of AI coding tools.

Vibe Coding can be helpful, especially when creating simple projects or testing new ideas. But depending on it completely without understanding the basics can lead to serious problems.

As Software Engineering students, we should not only focus on how quickly we can build an application. We should also focus on how secure, reliable and easy to maintain it is.

At the end of the day, AI can help us write the code, but it is our responsibility as developers to understand what we build.

Learning how to code is important, but learning how to build good software is even more important.

DEV Community: Enjinwi Emmanuel

Why Software Engineering Still Matters in Web Application Development: The Risks of Vibe Coding