DevSecOps, an amalgamation of development (Dev), security (Sec) and operations (Ops), prioritises security considerations from the outset of the software development process. Within the cybersecurity arena, DevSecOps marries development, security and operations principles to ensure security is ingrained in the development process. Though DevOps centres on enhancing collaboration and productivity by uniting development and operations teams, DevSecOps takes it further still by integrating security considerations. We at Works recognise that DevSecOps implementation is crucial to infusing security into our development process. By doing so, we can mitigate potential security breaches and achieve our objectives more swiftly and with enhanced security.
Are you seeking answers to similar queries? To gain further insights, continue reading.
What is DevSecOps?
DevSecOps pertains to incorporating enhanced security measures seamlessly into the existing DevOps development process, without developers having to abandon their present toolchain environment or compromise responsiveness and performance.
Introducing DevSecOps, which prioritises security in the shared responsibility model, requires core functional teams to modify their culture, processes and toolsets.
How does DevOps differ from DevSecOps?
DevOps concentrates on accelerating software release, whereas DevSecOps bolsters this process with an additional layer of security.
What are the advantages of DevSecOps?
DevSecOps aims to empower those with the most pertinent knowledge to make swift security decisions on a large scale without jeopardising safety. The notion of shared responsibility for maintaining security is broadened.
Other benefits of implementing DevSecOps encompass:
Affordable software deployment
In systems that have not embraced DevSecOps, software delivery is often delayed due to security concerns. Adopting this approach to safe and speedy delivery can reduce both time and cost, as it eliminates the need to duplicate processes to rectify security flaws.More secure environment
DevSecOps is a practice that embeds security operations into the software development lifecycle from the very beginning. The code is thoroughly scrutinised, scanned and tested at various intervals during the process to detect and resolve any potential vulnerabilities. Identified issues are immediately addressed, and any security risks with new dependencies are taken into consideration before implementing them.These procedures are particularly beneficial, as they eliminate the requirement for costly security updates throughout application development projects, simplifying and ensuring compliance.
Decreased time between security updates
DevSecOps implementation enables swift response to newly detected security vulnerabilities. By incorporating vulnerability screening and patching into the release cycle, common vulnerabilities and exposures (CVEs) can be reduced. This step reduces the time window that malicious actors have to exploit vulnerabilities in publicly accessible production systems.Automation-friendly
For organisations that use a continuous integration/continuous delivery pipeline for product deployment, cybersecurity testing should be integrated into an automated test suite for operations teams.The viability of automating security reviews is significantly impacted by organisations and project objectives. Introducing automated testing into your development process is the most efficacious method to ensure that all your software components are up-to-date and that your security unit tests are successful. Prior to deployment, static and dynamic analysis can also be employed to ensure that the code is secure and dependable.
Flexibility and adaptability
DevSecOps empowers organisations to stay secure amidst evolving market conditions and emerging demands. Advanced DevSecOps implementations showcase expertise in various areas, such as automation, configuration management, orchestration, containers, immutable infrastructure, and serverless computing.
What types of application security technologies are utilised in DevSecOps?
To achieve DevSecOps, various application security testing (AST) solutions can be incorporated into an organisation’s continuous integration/continuous delivery (CI/CD) workflow. Common examples of AST software are…
Static Application Security Testing (SAST)
To assess custom or proprietary code for security vulnerabilities, including code or design flaws, Security Analysis Tool (SAST) is implemented. Coverity® is one of the SAST technologies used in the code, build, and development stages of the Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC).Software Building Blocks Analysis (SCA)
Software Composition Analysis (SCA) tools, such as Black Duck®, offer an effective method of identifying likely security and licensing problems in open source and third-party components. These tools examine both source code and binary data to detect known vulnerabilities, allowing for speedy prioritization and remediation processes. Additionally, SCA can be seamlessly integrated into a Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery (CI/CD) workflow from build integration to pre-production release. It continuously monitors for new open source vulnerabilities as well.Interactive Application Safety Testing (IAST)
IAST tools examine how web applications behave during runtime in the context of human or automated functional testing.The Seeker® IAST tool leverages instrumentation to observe aspects such as application activity, data flow, and request/response exchanges. The tool automatically replays and analyses the outcomes of runtime errors, offering developers a comprehensive breakdown of the line of code where the errors were detected. This enables developers to prioritise the most pressing issues.
Real-Time Application Safety Checking (DAST)
Automated dynamic application security testing (DAST) can be used to simulate a hacker’s actions and evaluate your web app or API. DAST operates similarly to a pen tester by reviewing programmes through a network connection and inspecting client-side rendering.DAST tools can identify vulnerabilities with a low false positive rate, even without source code access or customisation, by interacting with your website.
Now the question is how to implement DevSecOps.
The initial steps involve preparation and creation.
Preparation is crucial for accomplishing success in any endeavour. A well-defined and concise strategy is more likely to be successful when implemented. Simply offering concise descriptions based only on features is inadequate. During preparation, experts may construct risk models, user designs, and establish requirements for acceptance testing.
Innovation should be our aim for the future. Initially, teams must evaluate their current processes. Obtaining data from diverse sources can be advantageous in identifying a direction. Since consistency is a key aspect of DevSecOps, setting up a code review system at this stage would be beneficial.
Build and test
Automating the building process is a natural progression following the planning phase. Source code can be matched with a build script to generate machine code, with automated building tools providing a plethora of user interfaces and plugins.
Once the pipeline is constructed, it undergoes testing, during which a dependable automated testing framework establishes reliable testing practices.
Deploy and commence usage
IaC tools are frequently employed throughout the deployment process due to their capacity to expedite and streamline software distribution.
Monitoring any zero-day vulnerabilities is a daunting responsibility assigned to the operations teams. Throughout the operational phase, regular maintenance is necessary to guarantee that the organisation’s infrastructure is secure and free from human error. Infrastructure as Code (IaC) solutions enable DevSecOps to implement these security measures rapidly and effectively.
Stage Four: Performance Monitoring and Capacity Enhancement
Utilising cutting-edge monitoring tools is crucial in this process to ensure that security measures remain efficient and up-to-date.
Scaling poses a risk to cloud infrastructure; however, this can be beneficial for businesses. By using virtualization, there is no need to construct and manage expensive data centres, providing a more cost-effective means to expand existing IT infrastructure to address new threats.
What challenges does DevSecOps encounter?
Cultural Conflicts
It is often challenging to convince individuals to embrace a new practice after they have been adhering to an established routine for an extended period. However, the majority of people are likely to be dissatisfied with the change.
DevSecOps has allowed developers and security experts to collaborate efficiently. In the past, conflicts between these two groups have led to mutual distrust, impeding the DevSecOps approach. To fully reap the benefits of DevSecOps, it is critical to transform this atmosphere of suspicion and establish an environment in which both teams can communicate and work together.
There is frequently a clash between software engineers whose focus is to promptly deliver high-quality code to meet their clients’ demands and security teams whose responsibility is to verify code safety. This can make collaboration challenging as their objectives are not always aligned.
Related Article: Techniques to Minimise DevOps Engineer Turnover
Diverse Challenges
The rising frequency of cyber-attacks has exposed a shortage of skilled cybersecurity professionals. This inadequacy has had a particularly adverse effect on small and medium-sized enterprises, which are finding it difficult to locate qualified personnel to safeguard their digital resources.
If your business is facing challenges in hiring highly-skilled DevOps engineers, Works may be the answer. Our AI-powered Intelligent Talent Cloud simplifies the process of sourcing, evaluating, matching and supervising the best software engineers from all over the world.
Why do businesses opt for Works?
Rapidity:
The majority of positions can be filled in as little as three to five days, and sometimes even instantly.Time-saving:
The interview procedure for the engineering team decreased by over 50 hours per hiring.Retention:
There is an almost perfect interest rate (97%) in securing someone’s attention.
Succinct Rephrasing
To keep up with the swift advancements in cybersecurity, contemporary software teams must maintain their agility and adaptability. DevSecOps provides teams with the ability to generate dependable, high-performing, and secure software swiftly and more effectively, potentially enabling them to stay in sync with the evolving landscape. Additionally, DevSecOps allows teams to include pre-production and production settings and real-time security information.
Begin constructing a secure foundation that will endure for generations by immediately recruiting top-notch DevOps professionals for your organisation with the help of Works.
