DevSecOps: the role of developers.
What is DevSecOps and what is it for?
In the field of agile software development, product security plays an increasingly important role. In the era of Continuous Delivery and Continuous Integration, however, the development process becomes a challenge that should not be underestimated.
For this reason, more and more companies are extending the DevOps approach, in which development (Development) and operations (Operations) are closely interconnected from the outset, to include security (Security) as well: hence the abbreviation DevSecOps.
DevSecOps is a readily available solution to problems that are part of everyday life for many software companies, taking equal account of the need for development speed and for security.
DevSecOps means integrating application and infrastructure security from the very start of the development cycle, as well as automating some security control activities so that they do not slow down the DevOps workflow.
To achieve these goals, you need to choose tools that allow security to be integrated consistently, such as an integrated development environment (IDE) with security features.
However, ensuring DevOps security takes more than implementing new tools: you need to leverage the cultural changes promoted by DevOps to integrate the work of security teams as quickly as possible.
Integrated DevOps security: what is the role of developers?
With DevSecOps, security teams’ need to protect information right from the birth of DevOps initiatives takes concrete form, together with the definition of an automation plan.
Developers too are called upon to rethink how code is created, through a process that takes into account the sharing of data, feedback and information on known vulnerabilities with security teams.
This new approach may require developers to take part in new security training courses, an aspect that is often secondary in the traditional development approach.
What does integrated security consist of?
For beginners, a good DevSecOps strategy serves to determine risk tolerance and to carry out a risk/benefit analysis.
What security controls are needed for a specific application?
How important is time to market for the various applications?
Automating repetitive tasks is fundamental to DevSecOps, since performing manual checks can be time-consuming.
DevSecOps and DevOps Security: the differences
DevSecOps considers security as a phase of the entire software pipeline: cybersecurity therefore comes into play throughout the flow from software development to release into production.
On the other hand, DevOps Security gives the security function responsibility for security throughout the entire process, from start to finish. Depending on your team – and how you work with others – these two approaches will have different advantages and disadvantages.
DevSecOps is quicker to implement, as it deals directly with developers and their work. It can make it easier to integrate security into the development process if it has not been there from the start.
Conversely, DevOps Security involves analysing the entire process and how security can be integrated into every phase of software development and delivery.
Rather than being involved at one specific point, security teams work to make security available to developers as an integral part of their workflows.
This involves integrating all the tools relating to vulnerability analysis, scanning or security infrastructure into the developers’ workflow.
This can be a tougher request: after all, it requires development teams to change some of their procedures. However, it makes it easier to guarantee security over time, as it becomes a continuous process rather than a single stage of software development.
It also makes security part of the developer’s mission, rather than a barrier to be bypassed or overcome. It also encourages greater collaboration over time to improve software development across all the teams involved.
By helping developers to identify and resolve problems before the operational phase of DevOps, security teams can deliver more value to the entire IT team.
This approach involves putting information in developers’ hands throughout the entire process, as well as moving security checks upstream.
It will take more work to get the right solution, but it will deliver much greater value to developers and to the company as a whole.
By taking a DevOps Security approach to security rather than a DevSecOps one, security teams can use their influence and experience to their advantage.
The benefits of DevSecOps in development.
The benefits of DevSecOps are clear. When a company decides to use the modern DevOps system to develop its products because of increased demand and high requirements, it often achieves unexpectedly high speeds in producing and releasing different versions of its software.
However, security is not taken into account during this process. If, as often happens, it is only integrated into the finished product at the very end, functionality problems may arise and delivery may also be significantly delayed.
If security is taken into account while the development process is under way, the situation is completely different: the process does not slow down at all, since the security area also benefits from the various monitoring and automation solutions.
In addition, the various development and operations teams learn to take security-related factors into account from the development phase onwards, so as to significantly reduce any flaws right from the start.
This means that secure yet stable software versions are produced in less time and can be delivered directly to customers. In this way, both customers and companies benefit from the new possibilities.
You might also be interested in this article:⬇️
DevOps methodology: a focus on trends and growth in the global market
