In the context of cyber security, SAST plays a crucial role in the early detection of vulnerabilities, allowing developers to address security issues before the application is deployed. It is an essential component of the Secure Software Development Lifecycle (SSDLC) and is known for its ability to integrate with development environments and automate the process of code scanning.
Since SAST tools do not require a running application, they can be utilised very early in the software development process—even before the code is compiled. This “shift left” approach to security testing enables developers to identify and fix vulnerabilities which, if left unchecked, could be exploited by threat actors once the application is in production.
Key benefits of SAST include its ability to scan the entire codebase systematically, enforce coding standards, and ensure compliance with security best practices. While SAST tools are powerful, they are most effective when combined with Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) and manual security reviews to comprehensively evaluate an application’s security posture.
Key Characteristics:
- Scans source code and binaries for security vulnerabilities
- Typically performed early in the development process
- Can be integrated into IDEs and continuous integration pipelines
- Complements dynamic analysis and manual security reviews
Examples:
- Real-World Example: A financial services firm uses SAST as part of their CI/CD pipeline to automatically detect and report potential vulnerabilities like SQL injection and buffer overflows each time code is committed to the version control system.
- Hypothetical Scenario: During the development of a new cloud storage platform, the team regularly conducts SAST to ensure that any changes or additions to the codebase do not introduce security weaknesses or violate compliance requirements.
Related Terms:
- DAST (Dynamic Application Security Testing): A testing process that examines an application in runtime, or a dynamic state, to find vulnerabilities that might not be detectable in static code.
- SSDLC (Secure Software Development Lifecycle): An industry standard process that embeds security best practices and testing throughout the entire software development lifecycle.
- Vulnerability: A flaw or weakness in the design, implementation, or configuration of software that can be exploited by threat actors, which SAST is designed to detect early on.
- Code Review: A complementary security process in which human reviewers inspect source code for errors or vulnerabilities that might be missed by automated tools like SAST.
