Practice : Static Application Security Testing (SAST)

Purpose and Strategic Importance

Static Application Security Testing (SAST) is a foundational security practice that analyses source code or binaries for vulnerabilities before applications are run. By detecting issues early in the development lifecycle, SAST helps reduce risk, improve code quality, and avoid costly late-stage fixes.

SAST empowers developers to write more secure code, shortens feedback loops, and integrates security directly into engineering workflows - aligning with modern DevSecOps principles.

Description of the Practice

  • SAST tools scan source code, bytecode, or binaries for common security issues (e.g. injection flaws, insecure APIs, hardcoded secrets).
  • Scanning occurs during development or as part of CI/CD workflows.
  • Results include detailed guidance, line references, and severity ratings.
  • Popular tools include SonarQube, Semgrep, CodeQL, Fortify, Veracode, and GitHub Advanced Security.

How to Practise It (Playbook)

1. Getting Started

  • Choose a SAST tool that aligns with your language stack and integrates with your version control and pipelines.
  • Run an initial scan to identify baseline vulnerabilities.
  • Configure the scanner to match your risk appetite - adjust thresholds, exclude test files, define rules.
  • Train developers on how to read and triage SAST findings.

2. Scaling and Maturing

  • Automate scans in CI pipelines to trigger on pull requests or merges.
  • Define ownership for findings - assign to authors or team leads via integrations.
  • Establish policies for severity-based gating (e.g. fail builds on critical vulnerabilities).
  • Use dashboards to track trends, team performance, and false positive rates.
  • Periodically tune rulesets to reflect evolving standards and remove noise.

3. Team Behaviours to Encourage

  • Treat SAST findings like functional defects - not someone else’s job.
  • Use pair programming or code reviews to address and prevent issues.
  • Share patterns of vulnerabilities and secure coding best practices.
  • Celebrate zero-finding builds and meaningful risk reduction.

4. Watch Out For…

  • High false positive rates that erode trust in results.
  • Overly strict policies that block delivery without support or context.
  • Unused findings piling up - stale issues reduce signal-to-noise.
  • Treating SAST as a one-time scan instead of an ongoing feedback mechanism.

5. Signals of Success

  • Developers act on SAST feedback early and routinely.
  • Codebases improve in security hygiene over time.
  • Critical vulnerabilities are caught before they reach staging or production.
  • Security conversations become part of engineering quality discussions.
  • SAST metrics inform training, design, and architectural decisions.