Avoiding Security Review Delays

In the summer of 2021, I had lunch with a senior security developer at one of Seattle’s leading tech firms. Even though we were relaxed in the sunny and cool afternoon of the Pacific Northwest, there was no doubt my friend was frustrated. Part of his job was running code through a popular scanning product and then evaluating the results. It was a tough role because he sat outside the team that was developing the code and he was often under pressure to run his analysis within the constraints of their deadlines. 

All too often, he had to deliver the bad news that the scan had found security issues. But that alone wasn’t why he was frustrated. His issue was that the tool that he was using was taking several hours to complete scans. He’d taken to starting the scan at the end of the week and hoping that it would be complete by Monday morning. The very tool that was supposed to make his job easier was actually a headache.

This is one of the fundamental challenges of analyzing software systems for security vulnerabilities. All too often, developers and stakeholders focus their project timelines on the functional specifications. Teams work feverishly to rapidly iterate from prototype to finished product. 

Security concerns are never disregarded, but the culture of “Let’s see if we can get it working the way we want first and button it up later” ends up costing more in the long run because the evaluating and testing cycles take longer. Not to mention that if substantial security problems are found, it can be difficult to remediate them without breaking things that were supposed to already have been completed. This problem is becoming acute in the SaaS world where solutions are being built faster than ever before with little to no security oversight.

The Right Tools and Software Are Critical

First, managers and executives need to mandate that the entire software development lifecycle and every environment should have security. Particularly for web-based SaaS tools, any vulnerability that exists is a potential attack vector. Attackers know that going after a dev version might not yield a jackpot, but it might give them access that exposes credentials that work in later versions or identifies a vulnerability that flies under the radar into production.

Second, automation and tooling are simply the name of the game. Using tools with code repositories, pipeline management and testing frameworks help ensure the elimination of as many potential vectors of error as possible. Security checks should be the same. We can’t always rely on the skills of a developer or an administrator to follow security best practices. 

We need tools that provide reliable and rigorous checks. Moreover, these tools need to run frequently. SAST scanning should be fast enough that a developer can run it with every save, or at least every commit. Coupling SAST and IAST scanning together is the gold standard for secure development. Every time code is compiled into a dev or test environment, it should be tested to make sure that vulnerabilities haven’t crept in and that the permissions and architecture of the system don’t work at cross purposes to expose vulnerabilities.

Finally, there is a fundamental issue that must be addressed in every manager’s office. Code quality is not the same as security. Sure, there might be some overlap, but it doesn’t make sense to have 200 rules for code quality and 50 for security. The two things are not equal, and it’s a fallacy to expect that having high-quality code without frequent security checks will ultimately lead to less time spent in security review. Don’t miss the forest for the trees. Make sure security is the team’s top priority.

Advocating for Security in SaaS

My friend didn’t have a problem holding teams accountable for the code they’d written. In fact, he relished being able to insist on high standards and was proud that his organization empowered him to do so. That’s exactly what we need in the software industry: Individuals who are unafraid to demand the best from their peers. But it’s imperative that we provide effective tools they can rely on to succeed.

The problem of security testing delays are not new to software development. It has been well-documented that it can take 640x the money to fix bugs in production, but due to a lack of effective tools this problem has been amplified in SaaS development. A SaaS development environment presents unique challenges that cannot be met by just employing code analysis or configuration testing for SSPM vendors. It requires a holistic view of the environment and the ability to use customization to be effective in the identification and remediation of vulnerabilities. 

With a comprehensive view, those responsible for security and those implementing it will see security as a necessity to innovate quickly rather than a necessary evil that is put off until last in hopes it can be avoided. Maybe then my friend won’t be as frustrated next time we meet.