Which Software Development Lifecycle Approach is Most Compatible with DevSecOps

Which software development lifecycle approach is most compatible with DevSecOps ?

a) Model-Driven Development

b) Model-Driven Architecture

c) Waterfall

d) Agile

The answer is d, which is Agile.

Overview of Agile

Agile is a methodology for the development of software that aims to achieve the continuous delivery of working software that has been developed through rapid iterations. Nevertheless, the term “agile methodology” is deceptive because it gives the impression that agile refers to a single strategy for the development of software. In contrast to other approaches to software development, agile does not prescribe a specific order in which certain steps should be carried out. Instead, it is a way of thinking about workflows and collaboration, as well as a set of values that guides our decisions concerning what we make and how we make it. In a nutshell, agile software development methodologies centre on the expeditious delivery of small, working software increments to the customer in an effort to increase that customer’s level of satisfaction. The focus of these methodologies is on continuous improvement, and they do so by utilising adaptive approaches and teamwork. Agile software development is often done by small, self-organizing teams of programmers and business representatives. These teams hold face-to-face meetings on a regular basis all the way through the software development life cycle. Agile methodology encourages the use of a minimalistic approach to software documentation and welcomes rather than fights changes at any stage of the software development life cycle.

Where did Agile come from?

In 2001, a small group of individuals who had grown weary of the conventional method of managing the production of software development products drafted the agile manifesto. This method of managing the development of software products is an improvement over previous approaches.

The agile manifesto has four important values:

1. Instead of processes and tools, the emphasis should be more on people and their interactions.
2. More important than comprehensive documentation is software that works.
3. Collaboration with customers is more important than contract negotiation.
4. Instead of sticking to a plan, the procedure should adapt to changes.

Agile software development is based on the following 12 principles:

1. By consistently releasing high-quality software, satisfy customers.
2. Never hesitate to accept modified requirements, regardless of when in the project they occur.
3. Deliver functional software in a shorter amount of time.
4. Throughout the project, business professionals and developers must collaborate closely on a daily basis.
5. The most efficient technique to communicate information between parties is face-to-face conversation.
6. Encourage people to work on a project by fostering an atmosphere of admiration, confidence, and empowerment.
7. The primary indicator of progress is functional software.
8. Sustainable development is promoted by the agile process.
9. The constant emphasis on excellence and quality in technical development and design fosters greater agility.
10. A crucial component of successful agile management is simplicity.
11. The best requirements, designs, and architecture come from self-organized teams.
12. To improve their effectiveness, teams should reflect through analysis and modification.

Agile frameworks

Popular software development processes such as continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD) and DevOps are built on agile software development frameworks such as Scrum, kanban, or extreme programming (XP). These agile software development frameworks form the basis of these popular software development processes.

Scrum is probably the most well-known agile framework that is used today; however, not everything that is agile is Scrum, and, truth be told, not everything that is Scrum is agile. Scrum is a framework for managing work that is designed for small, cross-functional teams of 5 to 9 people. Teams utilising this approach break their work into tasks called sprints that can be finished in a set amount of time. Members of the team, a Scrum master, and a product owner make up the components of a Scrum team. In most cases, Scrum is used when a large project can be segmented into shorter “sprints” that last between two and four weeks. Through a ritual known as the “retrospective,” the Scrum framework places an emphasis on feedback loops. It is possible that “inspect and adapt” will become the unofficial motto of Scrum. The agile manifesto came out before other agile frameworks, the most notable of which is kanban. On the other hand, these frameworks are regarded as agile due to the fact that they advocate for the values that are outlined in the agile manifesto. It would be impossible to list and note all of the different agile frameworks and scaling strategies available here due to the sheer number of options.

What is DevSecOps?

DevSecOps is an acronym that stands for development, security, and operations. It automates the process of integrating security into the software development lifecycle at every stage, beginning with the initial design and continuing through integration, testing, deployment, and software delivery. The way that development organisations approach security has undergone a natural and necessary evolution, and DevSecOps is a representation of that evolution. In the past, a separate security team and a separate quality assurance team would “tack on” security to software at the end of the cycle (almost as an afterthought), and the programme would then be tested by the two teams. These two squads operated independently of one another. This scenario was fairly controllable when software upgrades were only released once or twice a year. The conventional “tacked-on” approach to security produced an untenable bottleneck in the process when software engineers adopted Agile and DevOps practises with the aim of cutting software development cycles to weeks or even days.

Integration of application and infrastructure security into Agile and DevOps processes and tools is made possible by the DevSecOps methodology. It addresses potential vulnerabilities as soon as they are discovered, when they are simpler, more expedient, and less costly to fix (and before they are put into production). Additionally, DevSecOps makes the responsibility of securing applications and infrastructure a shared responsibility among the teams responsible for development, security, and IT operations, as opposed to making security the sole responsibility of a security silo. By automating the delivery of secure software without causing the software development cycle to be slowed down, it enables “software, safer, sooner,” which is the motto of the DevSecOps movement.

Benefits of DevSecOps

The main advantages of utilizing DevSecOps are an increase in both speed and security. The code that development teams produce is higher quality and more secure, as well as faster and more affordable. Below are the benefits of DevSecOps:

Rapid, cost-effective software delivery

When developing software in an environment that does not support DevSecOps, potential security issues can result in significant time delays. Fixing the code and the security flaws could be time- and money-consuming. The rapid and secure delivery provided by DevSecOps helps businesses save time and money by minimising the need to repeat a process in order to address security issues that have already occurred. Because integrated security eliminates the need for duplicate reviews and unnecessary rebuilds, the end product is code that is inherently more secure. This makes the process more time and money efficient.

Improved, proactive security

The DevSecOps methodology integrates cybersecurity procedures at an earlier stage in the software development life cycle. During each stage of the software development life cycle, the source code is subjected to various forms of security testing, including reviewing, auditing, scanning, and testing. As soon as these problems are discovered, action is taken to resolve them. Fixes for security flaws are implemented before new dependencies are brought into the system. When protective technology is identified and implemented at an earlier stage in the cycle, the costs associated with fixing security issues are reduced. In addition, improved collaboration between a company’s development, security, and operations teams improves the organization’s ability to react quickly and effectively to incidents and problems as they arise. DevSecOps practises shorten the amount of time required to patch vulnerabilities, which enables security teams to concentrate their efforts on more important tasks. Because of these practises, compliance is not only ensured but also simplified, which prevents application development projects from having to be retrofitted for security.

Accelerated security vulnerability patching

The speed with which newly discovered security flaws are managed is a significant advantage offered by the DevSecOps methodology. When vulnerability scanning and patching are integrated into the release cycle by DevSecOps, the ability to identify and patch common vulnerabilities and exposures (CVE) is reduced. This reduces the window of opportunity that threat actors have to exploit vulnerabilities in systems that are exposed to the general public.

Automation compatible with modern development

If an organisation ships their software via a continuous integration and continuous delivery pipeline, then the testing of cybersecurity can be incorporated into an automated test suite for the operations teams of that organisation. The objectives of the project and the organisation are major factors that should be considered before automating any security checks. Automated testing can confirm that software successfully passes security unit testing as well as ensure that all incorporated software dependencies are running at the appropriate patch level. In addition, it is able to perform code testing and code security using static and dynamic analysis prior to the final update being released to production.

A repeatable and adaptive process

As companies get older, their security measures get more sophisticated. The DevSecOps methodology is ideally suited for processes that are both repeatable and adaptable. This guarantees that the security measures are applied uniformly across the environment, despite the fact that the environment is constantly changing and adapting to meet new demands. A mature implementation of DevSecOps will have a solid automation, configuration management, orchestration, containers, immutable infrastructure, and even serverless compute environments. This is because these components are all essential to the process of developing and deploying software.

References

What is agile methodology? (2022, July 19). What Is Agile Methodology? Retrieved January 7, 2023, from https://www.redhat.com/en/topics/devops/what-is-agile-methodology

Which software development lifecycle approach is most compatible with DevSecOps? – Cyber Security | Quizack. (n.d.). Which Software Development Lifecycle Approach Is Most Compatible With DevSecOps? – Cyber Security | Quizack. Retrieved January 7, 2023, from https://quizack.com/ecommerce-cyber-security/mcq/which-software-development-lifecycle-approach-is-most-compatible-with-devsecops

Everything You Need To Know About What Is Agile Methodology. (2017, February 24). ADAPT METHODOLOGY®. Retrieved January 7, 2023, from https://adaptmethodology.com/what-is-agile-methodology/

What is DevSecOps? | IBM. (n.d.). What Is DevSecOps? | IBM. Retrieved January 7, 2023, from https://www.ibm.com/topics/devsecops