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Writer's pictureMike van der Bijl

Securing the Future: DevSecOps and OWASP SAMM in the Era of technical revolution

In the era of unprecedented digitization, where technology deeply penetrates into our society and organizations, software has become the driving force behind progress. No matter which industry, almost every organization is increasingly dependent on software applications. The goal? Optimizing business processes, providing seamless user experiences, and creating new opportunities. The crucial detail of this revolution: high-quality software is essential for the success and resilience of businesses and organizations.

However, this is the part where we encounter an interesting paradox: digitization is not only an enormous opportunity, also a threat. Cyber threats are evolving at an alarming rate. Attackers constantly seek vulnerabilities to infiltrate systems and steal sensitive data. Ensuring the security of software is no longer a choice, but an absolute necessity. 

Currently, digital infrastructure forms the backbone of modern operations. However, without robust software security, organizations can face severe risks, including data breaches, financial losses, reputational damage, and operational disruptions. The impact of these threats can be huge, leading to loss of customer trust, legal penalties, and even the collapse of the business. Therefore, prioritizing software security is essential to safeguard assets, ensure compliance, and maintain the overall quality and stability of the organization in a digital world.


DevSecOps

Therefore, the implementation of DevSecOps is not a best practice; it's a necessity. DevSecOps, short for Development, Security, and Operations, is an approach that integrates security into people, processes, and technology, transforming it into a culture rather than just a practice. The goal of DevSecOps is to ensure that security is a shared responsibility across all stages of the software development lifecycle, rather than being the sole responsibility of a separate security team.


Here are some compelling statistics that highlight the importance of DevSecOps and the risks associated with application malfunctions:


Many companies have already embraced the Dev(Sec)Ops concept as part of their operational strategy. Nevertheless, often challenges are encountered in understanding what actions should be taken and ensuring correct execution of these actions. Organizations face obstacles such as maintaining consistent quality across teams, managing compliance, gaining visibility into security postures, and fostering collaboration between DevOps and Security teams. This uncertainty can result in the deployment of features with lingering doubts. Confidence in your processes. That’s the key!! “In an ideal scenario” the development process involves committing newly written code, which undergoes thorough checks and verification within a CI/CD pipeline. Upon meeting predefined criteria, the code is automatically deployed to production. Unfortunately, many organizations lack the necessary processes and technologies to achieve this level of confidence. Some are unsure even where to begin. Fortunately, a robust framework exists to guide us in assessing our practices and identifying areas for improvement. This framework is known as "OWASP SAMM." OWASP stands for the Open Web Application Security Project, the organization behind the framework, while SAMM stands for the Software Assurance Maturity Model. Since there are various Software Assurance Maturity Models in existence, the full name "OWASP SAMM" is used to clearly identify this specific framework.

OWASP SAMM is closely aligned with the essence of DevSecOps. OWASP SAMM provides a structured and neutral approach to address the challenges by embedding security into all stages of the software development processes.



OWASP SAMM Framework

With OWASP SAMM, organizations can map their software security efforts, prioritize, and take steps to continually improve their security maturity. By pursuing higher levels of security maturity, organizations can mitigate the risks of cyber threats and moreover enhance the quality, reliability, and performance of their software applications.

The framework is based on the idea that organizations should not only strive for functional and operational excellence but also for a high level of security. It offers a framework that helps organizations evaluate, improve, and measure their software security practices in a systematic and measurable manner.


Similar to DevSecOps, OWASP SAMM aims to integrate security from the earliest stages of software development. This makes security a core component of software application design, development, and operational management. Through various dimensions such as policy and compliance, build environments, and responsiveness to security incidents, OWASP SAMM provides a comprehensive framework for enhancing the security maturity of organizations.


How to use the OWASP SAMM framework?


First, let's talk about the structure of OWASP SAMM. It's built around 15 security practices, which can be regarded as categories of tasks to make sure software is secure. These practices are grouped into 5 main business functions (area’s): Governance, Design, Implementation, Verification, and Operations. Each of these areas has its own set of practices, which are like big tasks to make sure each area is secure. For example, Governance might include things like setting policies, while Design might include planning how the software will be built securely.


Within each practice, there are different activities, which are specific things you need to do to make sure that practice is being done right. These activities are split into three levels of maturity. Think of it as climbing a ladder – as you climb higher and higher, the more advanced and secure your practices become.


Now, let's dive deeper into each area.

  1. Governance: The key factor in this area includes setting up the rules and structure for managing the security and culture within the organization.

  2. Design: Design focuses on planning in what manner the software will be built securely, considering factors such as architecture, coding practices and risks.

  3. Implementation: The actual building of the software happens in this area, making sure that security measures are implemented correctly.

  4. Verification: Verification involves testing the software to make sure it's secure and identifying any potential vulnerabilities.

  5. Operations: Finally, Operations has to do with maintaining and managing the security of the software once it's been deployed.


Each of these areas involves three practices, which are specific aspects of security within that area. For example, within the Design area, there might be practices related to how the software is designed, how the code is written, and how it's tested.


Now, within each practice, there are two streams of activities:

  • Stream A (Secure Software Engineering): This focuses on building the software securely, covering things like architecture, design, coding, and testing throughout the development process.

  • Stream B (Security Testing): Stream B is all about making sure the software is thoroughly tested for security vulnerabilities before it's deployed. This includes practices like code review, static analysis, dynamic analysis, penetration testing, and automation of security testing.


Lastly, each practice has three maturity levels. These levels represent how advanced and effective your security practices are. As you move up the levels, the objectives become more sophisticated, and stricter criteria for success apply.


Below an overview of what OWASP SAMM covers is included, containing all of its areas, practices, and streams.

Now we have discussed the structure of OWASP SAMM, let's delve into how to use it. 


OWASP SAMM Assessment

OWASP SAMM provides us with a questionnaire covering all business functions, practices, streams, and maturity levels (aka OWASP SAMM Assessment). The purpose: to have an unbiased individual, ideally with expertise in security and IT. The questions are directed towards the DevOps teams in your organization. Below, you'll find an example of the questions developed by OWASP SAMM.

Subsequently, the responses will be recorded in an Excel spreadsheet. Once all the questions are answered, this individual can proceed to assign scores to each question. For each question, there are four options available:

  1. The team lacks awareness of this topic.

  2. The team possesses knowledge of the topic.

  3. The team has incorporated the topic into their workflow.

  4. The team has deployed technology and regularly validates the process.


These options are sequential, meaning that if a team has technology in place but lacks knowledge or awareness of the topic, they cannot select the higher options. This structure

reflects the maturity level of the team. Therefore, the team must progress from option 2 to 3 before option 4 becomes applicable. 


Once you've completed all the questions and assigned scores, the template will automatically calculate the maturity level for each security practice and area, as demonstrated in the image below. 

After evaluating multiple teams, you can aggregate the scores and compute the average for each category. This comprehensive overview, featuring the average scores, will provide valuable insights into the areas in which your organization excels and the aspects that require attention. By identifying both strengths and limitations, you can prioritize initiatives for improvement and mitigate any identified risk. 


Conclusion

The rapid digitization of our society has made high-quality software indispensable for business success and resilience across all industries. However, this digitization also introduces significant risks, with cyber threats evolving rapidly. Therefore, integrating security into software development is essential. DevSecOps practices are necessary to address these challenges, as highlighted by alarming statistics on data breaches and application failures. Organizations often face difficulties in implementing DevSecOps effectively, lacking confidence in their processes. The OWASP SAMM offers a robust framework to guide these efforts. By embedding security throughout the software development lifecycle, OWASP SAMM helps organizations systematically evaluate, improve, and measure their security practices. This approach not only mitigates cyber risks but also enhances the quality, reliability, and performance of software applications. Utilizing OWASP SAMM enables organizations to identify strengths and limitations, areas for improvement, prioritize security initiatives, and ultimately achieve higher security maturity. 


So, let's develop exceptional applications using innovative technologies, while ensuring top-notch quality and security! DevSecOps and frameworks like OWASP SAMM can significantly help your organization in achieving these desired and important goals.


Are you wondering if you're on the right track with your application security practices? Do you want to know how to enhance your organization's approach? Or perhaps you need assistance in overcoming specific challenges? Our service, "DevSecOps Navigator," is here to help.


For more information, contact us at info@scyon.nl or request the brochure through this link.


Resources

Would you like to know more about OWASP SAMM here are some helpful resources: 


Would you like to know what other organizations think about OWASP SAMM you can read it here: 




















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