Application Security Strategy 2026: How AI, DevSecOps, and Platform Consolidation Are Changing the Game

This article is based on the Gartner report: Application Security Strategy 2026: AI, DevSecOps and Platform Consolidation.

Application Security (AppSec) remains a critical yet insufficiently mature discipline in many companies. Research shows that 43% of organizations are at the initial maturity level (Level 1), with the lowest average score among all cybersecurity domains — just 2.2.

To build a robust defense strategy by 2026, CISOs and IT leaders must account for three fundamental shifts: the dual impact of AI, the evolution of DevSecOps through improved developer experience, and inevitable platform consolidation.

1. Generative AI: Development Accelerator and New Threat Vectors

Generative AI (GenAI) is radically changing the software development landscape. On one hand, coding assistants accelerate time-to-market; on the other, they create new risks.

• "Vibe Coding" Risk: By 2027, at least 30% of application vulnerabilities are expected to be caused by "vibe coding" practices (intuitive coding using AI without a deep understanding of the code).
• Threats to AI Agents: By 2029, over 50% of successful attacks on AI agents will exploit access control issues, particularly prompt injections.
• The Solution — AI Code Security Assistants (ACSA): Instead of banning AI, companies should use it for protection. ACSA tools act as "virtual security experts," automatically suggesting vulnerability fixes, significantly reducing Mean Time to Remediate (MTTR).

2. DevSecOps and ASPM: Focus on Developer Experience

The traditional approach of shifting all security responsibility onto developers is no longer effective. Overload leads to ignored vulnerabilities.

The solution lies in adopting ASPM (Application Security Posture Management), which addresses three main challenges:

• Prioritization: Using reachability analysis helps filter out false positives. Some ASPM solutions reduce alerts by 75%, focusing only on vulnerabilities that can actually be exploited.
• Workflow Automation: Integrating checks directly into CI/CD pipelines (e.g., verifying signed commits) without human intervention.
• Visibility: Clear understanding of who owns a specific code snippet or API ensures rapid issue resolution.

3. Tool Consolidation: From Siloed Solutions to Unified Platforms

The era of separate tools for SAST, DAST, and SCA is fading. The market is moving toward combining functionality into unified Application Security platforms.

• Cloud Convergence: The boundaries between code and infrastructure are blurring. A merger of Application Security platforms and CNAPP (Cloud-Native Application Protection Platforms) is predicted.
• Unified Approach: This enables a "code-to-workload" protection concept, simplifying management and reducing costs associated with maintaining a "zoo" of tools.

How to Implement an Application Security Strategy?

Understanding trends is the first step. The next is selecting the right tools and correctly integrating them into development processes. Building a DevSecOps ecosystem in-house can be complex due to vendor variety and compatibility requirements.

Need help implementing your Application Security strategy? Contact Softprom — Value Added IT Distributor.

We offer more than just a set of products; we provide comprehensive expertise to solve AppSec challenges of any complexity:

• Portfolio of Best-in-Class Solutions: We offer leading global platforms for SAST, DAST, IAST, SCA, as well as advanced ASPM and CNAPP solutions that align with consolidation trends.
• Implementation Expertise: Our engineers will help select tools that best integrate into your CI/CD processes without slowing down development.
• Pilot Projects: We can help test AI Code Security Assistants (ACSA) and configure vulnerability prioritization processes.