Importance of DevSecOps in an Organization

Introduction

DevSecOps is an important step to achieving the ultimate goal of any business – continual security and delivery excellence. It is an organization’s effort to ensure the security of their software and infrastructure while simultaneously aiming to deliver the best possible service in a timely fashion. By leveraging security best practices at every stage throughout the software delivery pipeline, a DevSecOps program can help organizations of all sizes protect the integrity of their applications and minimize the risk of a breach.

In this blog post we’ll discuss why it’s important to build a DevSecOps program, what you need consider when building one, and how to use DevSecOps tools to achieve success.

Why Building a DevSecOps Program Matters

Given the frequency of malware infections and cyber-attacks, organizations need to be proactive in their approach to software security. Without a DevSecOps program in place, businesses can prolong the development of a piece of software, experience delays in production, and miss opportunities to solve problems quickly.

When security protocols are embedded and automated into each step of the software development and maintenance process, business executives can rest assured they are meeting their security obligations while still efficiently delivering their services.

At the same time, DevSecOps provides a number of additional business benefits such as:

1. Improved Security: DevSecOps programs use security controls ranging from automated application scanning and source code analysis to automated configuration management and container security. Errors are caught early in the development process and vulnerabilities are addressed quickly.

2. Improved Compliance: Organizations are better able to meet regulatory and industry compliance requirements related to their software development and delivery process.

3. Increased Productivity: Developers can build, deploy and test applications faster, resulting in greater productivity overall.

4. More Resilience and Agility: Through continuous automated monitoring and analysis, DevSecOps helps organizations move swiftly towards remediation in the event of a security issue.

What You Need To Consider When Building a DevSecOps Program

When developing a DevSecOps program, it’s important to understand that the goal is to automate security processes and procedures as much as possible. To achieve this, businesses need to consider their existing resources and capabilities, develop a plan for implementing DevSecOps principles and processes, and acquire the right people and technology to support their initiatives.

Start by developing your DevSecOps strategy. Allocating responsibility and accountability for security, understanding how to apply continuous integration and deployment, and determining how to measure progress and effectiveness are all key components of this strategy.

Organizations should also define their DevSecOps requirements, such as the tools and processes needed to implement the program, and the infrastructure changes and additional resources needed to support these tools and processes.

Finally, create an implementation plan with timelines, metrics, and milestones for the DevSecOps program. Before launching the program, make sure to test the systems and processes to make sure they are working correctly.

Using DevSecOps Tools To Achieve Success

For organizations to successfully implement a DevSecOps program, they need to have the right tools and processes in place. At the top of this list should be a DevSecOps Platform, which provides a comprehensive view of the entire software delivery pipeline.

Tools such as container-native security, cloud security configuration and policy compliance, continuous scanning and remediation, and vulnerability and configuration management can be used to help organizations maintain secure, high-quality software deployments.

To further streamline the software delivery process, organizations should consider incorporating automation and orchestration tools such as Jenkins, Ansible, and Puppet. These tools enable continuous integration, delivery and deployment, as well as automated monitoring and reporting.

Conclusion

By now it’s clear that DevSecOps is a critical component of an organization’s overall security strategy. Not only does it help safeguard against cyber-attacks and malware, it also helps organizations achieve their delivery goals in a faster and more efficient manner. When done properly, it can give businesses the peace of mind that their software and infrastructure are secure and resilient.

Organizations should take the time to assess their existing resources and capabilities and develop a plan that best fits their goals. Utilizing the right security and automation/orchestration tools will help ensure the success of the DevSecOps program. By following these steps, businesses can become more secure and efficient, better protected against cyber-attacks, and in better control of their software delivery process.