How to eliminate bottlenecks in deployment without sacrificing application security

In the world of software development, speed is everything. DevOps teams are under constant pressure to bring new features to market faster and stay ahead of the competition. However, this push for speed often conflicts with a critical requirement: Application Security (AppSec). Traditional security processes, designed for slower release cycles, can become a major obstacle, creating deployment bottlenecks that negate all the benefits of agile development.

So how do you find the balance? How can you eliminate these bottlenecks without leaving your applications vulnerable to attacks? The answer lies in changing the approach to security—it needs to be integrated into the software development lifecycle (SDLC) from the very beginning.

The problem: Security as a bottleneck

Traditionally, security was seen as a separate stage that occurred at the very end of the development cycle, just before deployment. The security team would conduct scans and tests, and if vulnerabilities were found, the code was sent back to the developers for remediation. This process, known as "waterfall security," is completely unsuitable for the fast and iterative cycles of DevOps.

In a CI/CD (Continuous Integration and Continuous Deployment) environment, this approach creates serious problems:

• Release delays: Discovering problems at late stages means costly and time-consuming fixes, which delays the product launch.
• Conflict between teams: Developers perceive security as an obstacle, while security specialists are frustrated by being involved too late.
• A culture of compromise: Under pressure from deadlines, teams may compromise on security, skipping important checks to release the product on time.

The solution: Integrating security into the CI/CD pipeline

To eliminate bottlenecks, security must become an integral part of the entire development process, not its final stage. This approach, known as DevSecOps or "shift-left security," involves embedding security checks directly into the tools and workflows that developers already use.

The key idea is to make security a shared responsibility. Instead of being a "gatekeeper," the security team becomes an "enabler," providing developers with the tools and knowledge to write secure code from the start.

The goal is to make security an automated, continuous, and transparent part of the CI/CD pipeline.

How it works in practice

Integrating security into CI/CD requires a strategic approach. Instead of trying to implement every possible check at once, start by identifying the most critical risks and the stages where automation will bring the greatest benefit.

Stage 1: Static Analysis (SAST)

Static Application Security Testing (SAST) tools scan the source code for known vulnerabilities even before it is compiled. Integrating SAST into code repositories (like GitHub, GitLab) allows developers to receive real-time feedback directly in their integrated development environment (IDE).

Stage 2: Dependency Analysis (SCA)

Modern applications rely heavily on third-party libraries and open-source components. Software Composition Analysis (SCA) tools automatically check these dependencies for known vulnerabilities, helping to prevent supply chain attacks.

Stage 3: Dynamic Analysis (DAST)

After deploying an application to a test environment, Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) tools simulate attacks on the running application. This helps identify runtime vulnerabilities that cannot be detected by analyzing the source code.

Stage 4: Real-time Protection (RASP and WAF)

Even with the most thorough checks, some threats may go unnoticed. This is where runtime protection solutions come in. Tools like Runtime Application Self-Protection (RASP) and Web Application Firewall (WAF) provide protection directly in the production environment, blocking attacks in real-time.

How Imperva solutions help accelerate DevOps

Products from Thales (Imperva) are designed with the needs of modern DevOps teams in mind and help to effectively solve the problem of security bottlenecks. They provide robust protection without compromising deployment speed.

For example, Imperva Cloud WAF easily integrates into the CI/CD pipeline, allowing security policy configuration to be automated as part of the code (Security as Code). This empowers developers to manage security just as they manage infrastructure.

In turn, Imperva RASP embeds directly into the application and requires no external network changes, making it an ideal solution for dynamic environments. RASP provides precise protection from within, blocking exploits in real-time with a minimum number of false positives and without slowing down developers.

By using these tools, organizations can transform security from a barrier into an integral part of the development process, ensuring both speed and robust protection for their applications.