DevSecOps definition

DevSecOps is a framework and model that integrates security into every phase of the software development lifecycle (SDLC).

Automated and manual security tests are performed throughout, from coding and merging to building, deploying, and running software in production. DevSecOps promotes shared responsibility for security across all teams involved in software development, helping to identify vulnerabilities early and reducing the need for time-consuming, costly fixes later in the process.

The Importance of DevSecOps

DevSecOps is crucial for managing security risks without disrupting delivery timelines. As software becomes more complex and cyber threats grow, relying solely on end-of-cycle security reviews leaves projects vulnerable to breaches and costly delays. DevSecOps helps teams detect and address vulnerabilities at every stage of the SDLC, reducing the risk of security gaps going unnoticed until production.

By making security a continuous process, organizations can maintain development speed while staying ahead of potential threats.

DevSecOps vs DevOps?

DevOps has transformed the way organizations build and ship software by emphasizing speed, quality, and collaboration. However, in the past, one critical aspect was often left behind: security.

DevSecOps addresses this gap by integrating security into every phase of the software development lifecycle (SDLC), just as DevOps does with automation and collaboration. Rather than treating security as a separate step, DevSecOps ensures it is embedded into development workflows, making security a shared responsibility.

For modern organizations, DevSecOps represents the next evolution of DevOps, extending its principles to create a development culture where security is proactive, automated, and continuous across the SDLC.

Benefits of implementing DevSecOps

Organizations that adopt DevSecOps typically see benefits that include:

• Early detection of vulnerabilities: DevSecOps integrates security checks throughout the software development lifecycle, allowing teams to catch and fix vulnerabilities early. This proactive approach reduces the risk of security breaches and minimizes costly, time-consuming fixes later in the process.

• Improved security posture: DevSecOps ensures that security isn’t a one-time checkpoint but an ongoing part of the development process, reducing the risk of breaches. Continuous monitoring, automated vulnerability scanning, and regular security testing strengthen an organization’s defense against threats.

• Cost savings: Fixing security issues early in development is significantly less expensive than addressing them post-release. DevSecOps reduces the need for extensive manual reviews and rework, leading to lower overall development and maintenance costs.

• Regulatory compliance: DevSecOps helps teams meet industry regulations and compliance standards by automating security checks and maintaining thorough audit trails. Continuous security validation ensures that applications align with data protection and privacy laws without disrupting development workflows.

• Faster incident recovery: With real-time monitoring and streamlined communication between teams, DevSecOps allows for quicker identification, response, and recovery from security incidents. This minimizes downtime and potential damage.

• Culture of shared accountability: DevSecOps fosters a culture of shared responsibility, encouraging developers, operations, and security teams to work together with a security-first mindset. This approach breaks down silos, improves communication, and ensures consistent security practices across all stages of development.

• Scalability and consistency: Automated security processes apply the same security standards across all projects and environments. This helps teams scale development efforts without sacrificing security.

By embedding security into every phase of development, DevSecOps not only reduces risks and costs but also empowers teams to deliver high-quality software at a faster pace.

What is the DevSecOps culture?

An organization with a DevSecOps culture makes security a shared responsibility across development, operations, and security teams—rather than a separate or final step in the software development process. It encourages collaboration, open communication, and proactive security practices throughout the development lifecycle.

This culture is based on the following DevSecOps principles:

• Security is everyone’s responsibility. Developers, operations, and security teams work together to integrate security into every phase of development.

• Automation is embraced.Teams continually identify how and when to useautomation, allocating resources to build and maintain critical automated processes.

• Security is built-in, not bolted on. Instead of treating security as an afterthought, teams incorporate it early in the development process (a "shift-left" approach).

• Knowledge is shared for continuous learning. Teams share their expertise, review security incidents openly, and continuously improve security practices.

By fostering a DevSecOps culture, organizations can build software more quickly while reducing security risks and avoiding costly, last-minute security fixes.

DevSecOps best practices

Implementing DevSecOps effectively requires adopting key best practices that enhance security, efficiency, and collaboration throughout the software development lifecycle. These include:

• Integrate security into CI/CD pipelines. Embedding security tools into CI/CD pipelines ensures that security checks are automatically performed at each stage of development. Adopt this approach to minimize the risk of introducing vulnerabilities into production and reduce the need for last-minute security fixes.

• Foster a collaborative DevSecOps culture. Encouraging open communication and cross-team collaboration helps integrate security seamlessly into workflows without slowing down development. Create shared accountability across the organization.

• Automate security processes. Automation reduces human error and ensures security checks are consistently applied across all stages of development. Use automated tools for code scanning, vulnerability detection, and compliance checks to help catch issues early and remediate them quickly.

• Conduct regular security testing and threat modeling. Continuous security testing, including static and dynamic analysis, helps identify vulnerabilities before they become threats. Performing threat modeling allows teams to anticipate potential attack vectors and build defenses proactively.

• Shift security left in the development process. Shifting left means incorporating security earlier in the software development lifecycle rather than addressing it at the end. Identify and fix security issues during coding and testing phases to help prevent costly rework and improve overall software quality.

• Maintain visibility with auditable security practices. Security events and changes should be logged and easily traceable to ensure accountability and compliance. Maintain detailed audit trails to detect security incidents, monitor system integrity, and meet regulatory requirements more easily.

Adopting these practices significantly contributes to an organization's DevSecOps success.

GitHub support for your DevSecOps implementation

GitHub provides a range of tools and services to help integrate security into every stage of your development lifecycle. With built-in security features and automation, GitHub supports modern DevSecOps practices, making it easier to detect vulnerabilities, manage compliance, and streamline security workflows.

• GitHub Advanced Security provides code scanning, secret scanning, and dependency reviews to identify and fix vulnerabilities early in the development process.

• GitHub Actions automates workflows, including security checks and compliance tasks, to ensure that security practices are consistently applied.

• Dependabot automatically updates dependencies to the latest secure versions, reducing the risk of vulnerabilities in third-party libraries.

• GitHub Secret Protection detects and prevents accidental exposure of sensitive credentials and API keys.

• CodeQL allows developers to perform semantic code analysis to detect security vulnerabilities and coding errors.

• A checklist for AI-Powered DevSecOps white paper provides comprehensive, actionable guidance on infusing your DevSecOps strategy with AI.

Get started with DevSecOps by exploring these security tools and resources and integrating them into your development workflow.