Why did we choose GitLab for enhanced DevSecOps?

Security has moved higher up the priority list in recent years. Reports of compromised software and applications have demonstrated severe impacts on businesses and their customers. Many DevOps teams have responded by incorporating security into every stage of the development lifecycle to stay ahead of these threats.

The Australian Signals Directorate’s (ASD’s) latest Cyber Threat Report , covering FY2023, has reminded us again of these imperatives, with the average cost of cyber crime rising by 14% and 1,100 incidents reported to the ASD. At x-RD, we have seen a growing need in the market to support DevSecOps demands and it’s for this reason that we built SecD3v.

When we began building a DevSecOps platform, we needed a provider to meet software requirements, deliver efficiency, and meet our users' evolving needs. During our search, GitLab stood out as the best choice, with cost-effective and seamless solutions that we struggled to find elsewhere on the market. Here are the reasons we chose GitLab and the benefits of our platform, SecD3v.

What benefits does GitLab deliver?

GitLab is an integrated DevOps platform that simplifies software development by combining coding, testing, deployment, and monitoring in one place. Here are the reasons we use it to support our DevSecOps platform, SecD3v.

Comprehensive DevOps platform

GitLab is a best-in-class DevOps platform with a comprehensive suite of tools spanning the entire software development lifecycle, including coding, testing, deployment, and monitoring. It enables integration with third-party security tools and project management software to support the development process from end to end.

Due to its best-of-breed tools, we find that GitLab meets the diverse needs of software developers across source code management to continuous integration and delivery, facilitating a more streamlined and cohesive development experience. With GitLab, development teams can efficiently deliver high-quality software.

Streamlined DevSecOps processes

With all these tools and capabilities, GitLab offers a streamlined approach to software development that integrates various stages of the development lifecycle into a single platform, simplifying the process and reducing the time and effort needed when managing multiple tools. GitLab enables developers to focus on innovation and product quality rather than becoming dragged down in disjointed development processes spread across multiple tools.

GitLab also automates many repetitive tasks within the DevOps pipeline, accelerating development. This capability speeds up software delivery, ensures higher reliability and helps developers achieve consistency in the final product.

Cost-effective solution

GitLab is a cost-effective choice for DevOps teams. Its all-in-one suite of integrated tools reduces the necessity for multiple software solutions, which can become costly when adding more tools. With all capabilities in one place, GitLab streamlines processes and minimises expenses associated with managing and maintaining multiple platforms. GitLab's tools for automating and simplifying tasks also lead to indirect cost savings by shortening time-to-market and reducing manual work.

How SecD3v builds on these benefits

SecD3v is a sovereign and IRAP-assessed DevSecOps solution based on GitLab that operates as a multi-tenanted software factory. It integrates with corporate and enterprise networks, offering comprehensive DevSecOps-as-a-Service.

Data isolation with separate tenancies

SecDev enables developers to create separate tenancies for data isolation. This feature securely compartmentalises data, reducing the risk of unauthorised access and data breaches. Customers can make as many tenancies as needed at no additional cost, each protected by security monitoring and incident management. This feature is essential for organisations handling confidential or classified information.

We understand that government and high compliance sectors must meet strict data protection standards, and SecD3v's isolated tenancies enable developers to meet these standards. Our approach maintains data integrity and minimises the risks of data compromise, making SecD3v a key component in secure digital infrastructure management.

High-level cyber security controls

Gartner predicted that modern privacy laws will encompass the personal data of 75% of the world's population by the end of 2024. As privacy regulations expand, more organisations need the assurance of security tools.

SecD3v is an IRAP-assessed platform with proven adherence to government-grade security standards. Our platform offers ISM security hardening, monitoring, and incident response services that enable DevSecOps teams to meet regulatory compliance standards and improve data security.

SecD3v operates under a shared responsibility model, clearly defining security roles between SecD3v and its customers. This approach offers enhanced flexibility, allowing customers to tailor their security measures to specific needs. Customers handle the security of their cloud tenancy and GitLab platform management, while SecD3v secures the cloud infrastructure, including GitLab platform maintenance.

Quickly deploy high-availability tenancies

SecD3v leverages automated GitLab deployments to quickly set up new tenancies, supporting teams in balancing speed and security within their DevSecOps workflows. You can have new tenancies running in just 30 minutes rather than building your own secure dev environment .

Each tenancy includes full redundancy so that development teams can continue working and accessing data in the event of a failure. To minimise downtime, we ensure 99.99% uptime, with a Recovery Point Objective (RPO) and Recovery Time Objective (RTO) of less than 24 hours.

Conclusion

GitLab and SecD3v work together to offer capabilities that enable developers to incorporate security elements easily into the DevOps cycle.

GitLab is the clear choice to support SecD3v due to the suite of tools that streamline processes and offer cost-effectiveness. Third-party integrations simplify the development lifecycle and help teams complete projects at a higher standard of reliability.

SecD3v builds on these capabilities with robust security solutions suitable for government and high-compliance sectors. Separate tenancies for data isolation, compliance with IRAP-assessed controls, and suitability for multi-classified work environments make SecD3v a trusted choice for organisations requiring stringent data security measures.?

Why choose SecD3v as your software factory?

We built SecD3v on GitLab to provide developers with a fast, secure solution to support DevSecOps workloads. Teams can quickly deploy tenancies to readily consume a fully integrated DevSecOps service without the time and financial constraints of traditional methods. SecD3v is IRAP assessed up to PROTECTED, making it an excellent choice for organisations that must maintain a high level of compliance.

Please visit our website for more information and to start using SecD3v .