DevSecOps and CI/CD Security Best Practices

Background

Traditionally, security has been treated as a separate phase in the software development lifecycle, often causing delays and friction between development, operations, and security teams. In most of the cases, the software was released in a hurry without adequately following the security best practices, which increases the chances of security breaches.

Organizations gradually began to realize that traditional security practices, which often involved manual reviews and post-deployment security checks, were insufficient to address the evolving threat landscape. Rapid changes in technology and software development practices along with Regulatory requirements and industry standards impose strict security and compliance mandates on organizations.

In response to these challenges, the concept of DevSecOps has gained prominence. DevSecOps integrates security practices into every stage of the software development lifecycle, from design and development to deployment and operations.

However, despite the growing recognition of the importance of DevSecOps, adoption rates remain relatively low. According to DevOps surveys, only around 30% of organizations have fully implemented robust DevSecOps practices into their application development lifecycle.

Why DevSecOps?

DevSecOps aims to shift security left, meaning that security considerations are incorporated earlier in the development process, from the initial design phase through deployment and continuous improvement.

DevSecOps represents a paradigm shift in how organizations approach security in software development. By embracing DevSecOps principles and practices, organizations can better address the challenges posed by the evolving threat landscape, regulatory requirements, and the need for rapid and secure software delivery.

DevSecOps

DevSecOps follows the "Shift left" approach to the practice of integrating security earlier into the software development lifecycle. DevSecOps involves integrating security practices into every stage of the development lifecycle, from planning and coding to testing, deployment, and operations. ?

Why CI/CD Security is Critical in DevOps?

The CI/CD pipeline plays a crucial role in the success of DevOps. After developers commit their code to the repository, the pipeline takes over, automating the build, testing, and deployment processes to prepare the code for production.

The security of the code deployed to production depend on the security measures implemented within the CI/CD pipeline. However, if test cases are flawed, incomplete, or tampered with, vulnerabilities may slip through undetected. Additionally, malicious or vulnerable code could be injected into the application during the CI/CD process through third-party dependencies.

Ensuring the security of the CI/CD pipeline is crucial for mitigating these and other potential security risks throughout the entire software development lifecycle.

The SolarWinds hack underscored the significant risks associated with software supply chains. Attackers were able to compromise the SolarWinds Orion software by injecting malicious code into the application at compile time, allowing them to distribute the compromised software to thousands of organizations through legitimate software update channels.

CI/CD Security Risks

The SolarWinds cyberattack in 2021, has highlighted the inherent risks associated with CI/CD (Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment) practices. When deploying applications through CI/CD, it's crucial to consider the following risks:

Not Enough Security Controls to Manage Process Flow: A lack of approval or review processes can enable attackers to introduce malicious code into the CI/CD pipeline undetected.

Weak Identity and Access Management: Poorly managed accounts and access controls provide attackers with additional avenues to compromise systems and applications. Also, maintaining static credentials, unnecessary access privileges, or unchanged admin credentials can provide attackers with persistent access to CI/CD environments.

Fetching and Executing Dangerous Dependencies: Misconfigurations in dependency management can lead to the execution of malicious code packages, potentially resulting in credential theft or system compromise.

Poisoned Pipeline Execution (PPE): Attackers may inject commands into the build process, compromising the integrity of the CI/CD pipeline and resulting in the deployment of compromised applications.

Missing Access Controls within the Pipeline: Inadequate access controls within the CI/CD pipeline can allow attackers unrestricted access, enabling them to manipulate pipeline systems and processes.

System Misconfigurations: Overlooked security settings in CI/CD systems can leave them vulnerable to exploitation and compromise by malicious actors.

Excessive Access Granted to Third Parties: Connecting external resources to the CI/CD pipeline without proper access management expands the attack surface, increasing the risk of unauthorized access and data breaches.

Poor Artifact Validation: Without adequate validation controls, attackers may push infected artifacts or malicious code through the CI/CD pipeline, compromising the integrity of deployed applications.

Lack of Observability: Inability to detect and respond to security threats due to poor logging or visibility into CI/CD pipeline activities can result in delayed or ineffective incident response efforts.

CI/CD Security Best Practices

Securing the CI/CD Pipeline involves a robust strategy to mitigate potential security risks at various stages of application development and deployment.?

Some activities that are typically incorporated into a CI/CD security program include:

Identify Risky Dependencies:?In modern software development, leveraging third-party components is common practice which offers to expediate the development cycles and enhanced functionality. However, alongside these benefits it invites the inherent security risks and it directly impact the security posture of these dependencies to the overall security of the application.

Source Composition Analysis (SCA) serves as a critical tool in managing these risks effectively. By conducting thorough scans of an application's dependencies, SCA tools can identify and evaluate any known vulnerabilities present within these components. This proactive approach allows development teams to identify and address security issues early in the development lifecycle, minimizing the likelihood of integrating vulnerable code that could potentially lead to supply chain attacks or compromise the integrity of the application.

Integrating SCA into the build process ensures that security assessments of third-party dependencies are performed automatically and consistently with each build iteration. This not only streamlines the security review process but also enables development teams to promptly identify and mitigate any risky dependencies before they are integrated into the application.

Examples of SCA tools include Snyk, Black Duck (Synopsys), and WhiteSource.

Identify Risky Code:?To establish the security of an application right from its inception, organizations shall utilize the Static Application Security Testing (SAST) tools. These tools play a crucial role in scrutinizing the source code, identifying vulnerabilities that could potentially be exploited if not promptly addressed.

The strategic integration of SAST into the CI/CD pipeline is an important practice for secure development. This incorporation allows for the early detection and resolution of security issues during the developmental stages, thereby mitigating the risk of these vulnerabilities progressing further in the software development lifecycle. This proactive approach aligns with the principles of DevSecOps, fostering a more secure and resilient software development process.

Examples of SAST tools include SonarQube, Checkmarx, Fortify, and Coverity.

Identify Run-Time Errors and Edge Cases:?To detect and identify the run time errors and vulnerability, Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) plays a crucial role.? Differing from Static Application Security Testing (SAST), DAST tools operate on the application while it is running, dynamically identifying security weaknesses that become apparent only during actual operation.

By simulating real-world scenarios and actively probing the application, DAST ensures that potential vulnerabilities are identified and addressed, contributing to a robust security posture before the deployment phase of the SDLC. Combining both static and dynamic analyses, enhances the effectiveness of security assessments and ensuring a more comprehensive security evaluation before deployment.

Examples of DAST tools include OWASP ZAP, Burp Suite, and Acunetix.

Implementing Runtime Security Measures:?Introducing Runtime Security Measures: Despite rigorous testing efforts, it's possible for vulnerabilities to elude detection or surface after deployment. To address this concern, implementing runtime security solutions becomes imperative. Among these, Runtime Application Self-Protection (RASP) emerges as a pivotal safeguard.

RASP tools offer continuous monitoring and protection for applications in production environments. They operate in real-time, actively detecting and responding to potential threats. RASP tools can identify and thwart malicious activities, such as injection attacks or unauthorized access attempts, before they escalate into serious security breaches through analyzing application behavior and traffic patterns.

The proactive nature of RASP solutions ensures that applications remain resilient against evolving threats, even in dynamic and unpredictable production environments. By complementing traditional security measures with runtime protection capabilities, organizations can strengthen their defenses and mitigate the impact of vulnerabilities that may slip through during development or emerge post-deployment.

Examples of RASP tools include Veracode Runtime Protection, Contrast Security etc.

Container Misconfigurations: In contemporary software deployments, container security emerges as a pivotal element essential for identifying and addressing security risks within containerized environments. Container security scanning tools to be integrated into the CI/CD to analyze container images for vulnerabilities and misconfigurations to minimize the probability of security breaches and fortifying overall security posture.

Examples of container security scanning tools include Clair, Anchore, and Twistlock.

Security Testing executed during the CI/CD pipelines is enough?

Certainly not, Security integration and testing during the CI/CD is important however there are many aspects which is missed out during our CICD pipelines: CI/CD pipelines provide an opportunity to automate security testing and integrate it into the development process, they should be part of a broader and more comprehensive approach to security however it may not be sufficient on its own.

Automated security testing tools used in CI/CD pipelines detect common vulnerabilities such as injection flaws (SQL injection, command injection), cross-site scripting (XSS), and insecure configurations (open ports, weak encryption, communication etc). Automated scan only detected the well-known vulnerabilities with established patterns however it may not cover the potential attack vector crafted through new gen techniques and tools.

Recommended Approach:

In conjunction with CI/CD best practices, organizations should embrace the following security measures that encompass a variety of testing techniques and practices to ensure robust security coverage.

Manual Security Review: Conduct manual security reviews and code inspections to identify security issues that may not be detected by automated tools.

Applications often necessitate access to sensitive information like passwords and API keys to function properly. Consequently, these secrets must be readily accessible within CI/CD pipelines for testing purposes. However, if these secrets are inadvertently exposed within the CI/CD pipeline or DevOps environments, they could become a prime target for attackers seeking to exploit them.

Penetration Testing: As part of robust security plan, regular penetration testing strategy to emulate real-world attack scenarios and uncover vulnerabilities that automated scans might overlook. These tests simulate the tactics and techniques used by malicious actors, providing valuable insights into the effectiveness of existing security controls and the resilience of deployed defense mechanisms.

Runtime Monitoring: Integrate runtime monitoring and logging mechanisms to enable real-time detection and response to security incidents. We shall define the scenarios to continuously monitor application behavior and system activities, to identify suspicious or unauthorized activities, both during the development phase and in production environments.

Continuous Improvement: Continuously review and improve security practices, processes, and tooling based on feedback, lessons learned, and emerging threats.

Securing CI/CD pipeline is very critical, complex, and continuous effort that demands a culture of security awareness and collaboration within the organization.