How to Implement DevOps Security in an Application?

Although it's evident that security needs to be integrated throughout the DevOps life cycle, how can we achieve this without compromising the speed, agility, and other essential DevOps principles?

DevOps teams don't require collaboration with security teams to implement the proper controls, but they should take responsibility for incorporating security into their practices and practices.

When this culture is embedded across the entire organization, the term is "DevSecOps."

To increase DevOps security while also balancing the necessity for agility, think about applying the following strategies and tools:

1.      Embrace a DevSecOps model

Adequate DevOps security requires collaboration across functional lines and buy-in from all departments to ensure security concerns are integrated throughout the development cycle (product design development delivery, operations support.).

DevSecOps will require the integration of cybersecurity and governance features like Identity and Access Management (IAM) and firewalling, privilege management, integrated security management (including code reviews), threat monitoring configuration management, and vulnerability management across the DevOps process.

If done correctly, you can align cybersecurity with DevOps, facilitate rapid product releases, and avoid costly recalls or changes after products are released. To ensure success, all employees must be accountable for adhering to best practices for security within their respective roles.

2.      Implement policy and governance

Communication and governance are essential to ensuring a holistic security system for DevOps or any environment.

Establish simple cybersecurity guidelines and policies for team members and developers to comprehend and adhere to. It will allow teams to create code compliant with the security requirements.

3.      Make your DevOps security tools and processes.

Without security tools that are automated to analyze code, patching, configuration management, vulnerability management, and the management of privileged credentials and secrets, there is no way of extending security into DevOps processes.

Automation can also limit the risk arising from human error and the associated downtime or vulnerability. Prioritize the implementation of automated tools to detect the possibility of threats, vulnerable or problematic code, as well as issues with processes and infrastructure.

The closer you can match how tight security is implemented with the DevOps process, the less likely you will encounter resistance to implementing security methods.

4.      Perform comprehensive discovery

It is essential to ensure that all approved devices, tools, and accounts are regularly identified, verified, and put under security supervision according to your security policy.

5.      Management of the vulnerability of conduct

Security vulnerabilities should be appropriately examined, scanned, and remedied across integration and development environments before deployment to production. Utilize penetration testing as well as other attack techniques to find weaknesses in pre-production code as well as to identify areas of improvement.

When software is launched into an operational environment, DevOps security can test tools and tests against the infrastructure and software used in production to find and fix vulnerabilities and other issues.

6.      Should adopt Configuration management

Scan the system to find and fix mistakes and possible mistakes. Ensure all configurations are protected using the industry's best practices. Continuously configure and harden scans of baseline across the server and builds for virtual, physical, and cloud-based assets.

7.      Secure access through DevOps secrets management

Eliminate embedded credentials hidden in scripts, code and files. Also, they can be stored in service accounts and other tools cloud platforms.

It requires separating the code from the password; when not being used, it is securely stored in a secure, central password safe. Secure password management software allows scripts and applications to request (or solicit) access to the password via the central password safe.

Through API-based calls, users get control over files, script codes, files, and embedded keys. In turn, you can automate the rotation of passwords at the frequency you want.

8.      Control, monitor, and audit access using privilege access management

Implement minimum privilege access rights to minimize the chances for external or internal attackers to increase privileged user rights or exploit harmful software.

Practically, it means that you should eliminate administrator privileges on end-user machines, secure storage of credentials for privileged accounts, and use a simple process to checkout.

Check all privilege-based sessions to ensure that privilege-based actions are legal and conform to compliance requirements.

The application of the most miniature privilege model will also mean the restriction of access for testers and developers to only specific production, development and management systems, but granting them the proper rights to build machines and images, as well as deploy configuration, modify and fix production issues with images and machines.

Also, think about restricting access for developers to specific containers or runtime permissions to containers on systems but still allowing the necessary access to write code, build and test, validate and manage components of applications.

The most advanced PAM solutions can automate the management, control and auditing of access to privileged accounts and the complete process of managing privileged credential secrets.

With PAM software, you can quickly grant and audit access to privileged accounts to all users and machines and programs based on the most miniature privilege model.

9.      Segment networks

Segmenting your network can limit the possibility of attackers having "line of sight" access—separate assets, which includes server resources and applications, into groups that don't have trust between them.

In the event of access traversing the trust zones, you can deploy secure jump servers with multi-factor authentication and adaptive access authorization and use session monitoring to monitor access.

Also, further segment contexts based on access by role, user application, and the data being sought.

DevOps security is a crucial element of an efficient DevOps ecosystem. It can also assist in finding and correcting code vulnerabilities and operational weaknesses before they become an issue.

Implementing DevOps security at the beginning of the development process ensures security is at the heart of every system and application development aspect.