DevSecOps is a revolutionary approach to system development that places security at the center of the process. This approach is a natural evolution of DevOps that aims to optimize the collaboration between developers and operations to create an efficient, continuous, and agile workflow.
DevSecOps is based on three fundamental principles that make this approach powerful:
- Continuous processes flow from left to right.
DevSecOps emphasizes delivering requirements in low-risk versions, adding automated tests and Continuous Integration (CI) to the implementation pipeline. That means developers can detect security issues at the earliest notice and correct them before they become a real hurdle. - Feedback mechanism from right to the left
DevSecOps allows developers to anticipate problems instead of waiting for them to occur in production. That means they can identify vulnerabilities and fix them quickly, reducing the risk for security breaches and improving the quality of the software provided.
- It fosters an environment that favors continuous learning and experimentation.
With DevSecOps, the engineering team can continuously improve the development and operations, adding security to the process. That allows them to try new security technologies and methodologies without fearing harming the production environment.
O DevSecOps includes security from planning to implementation. From planning to implementation, ensuring it is present in each life cycle step and promoting the Secure System Development Life Cycle (SSDLC). It feels as if we were using what we have already learned with DevOps and added security processes to it, naturally and without impact.
There are fundamental points to consider when we talk about DevSecOps. One of these points is the three layers model, composed of Security Champions, Secure by Design, and Automation. These layers are the foundations on which the process must be built to ensure security in every step of the system’s life cycle.
Another important aspect is maturity, reached through a process of 8 steps corresponding to the level of maturity of each of the three layers. This process is designed to organize activities, obtain traction for the execution of the project pipeline and present the benefits of the results in a before-and-after approach.
The eight steps of a maturity process:
- Planning security
- Collecting information about systems and applications
- Automatizing the CI (Continuous Integration) pipeline
- Identify vulnerabilities
- Correct vulnerabilities
- Adopting best practices standards
- Measuring results
- Reporting progress
According to these steps, it is possible to ensure security is incorporated in the entire development process, from planning to implementation, resulting in safer and more reliable systems.
