Best Practices for Securing DevOps Pipelines

Introduction

Developers are under increasing pressure to deliver software faster and more frequently. The rise of DevOps and continuous delivery has accelerated release cycles and provides more opportunities to push code changes to production. However, this speed also introduces new security risks if security is not built into the pipeline from the start. DevSecOps practices aim to shift security left and integrate it earlier into the development lifecycle.

Here are some of the best practices I recommend for building security into your CI/CD pipelines and DevOps workflows.

Secure Your Code Repository

Your source code repository contains the crown jewels for attackers. Make sure you are using a secure git repository hosted in the cloud like GitHub or GitLab. Enable 2-factor authentication for all accounts that access the repo. Use access controls to restrict permissions and limit access to those who need it. Perform periodic audits of users and credentials.

Only allow trusted pipelines to access your repositories. Revoke access for any compromised credentials or pipelines immediately. Monitor your repositories for suspicious activity like abnormal commits.

Automate Security Scanning

The earlier you find vulnerabilities in your code, the cheaper and easier they are to fix. Automate security scanning as part of your CI/CD pipeline. Scan for secrets and credentials committed accidentally. Analyze dependencies for known vulnerabilities. Run static application security testing (SAST) tools to inspect code for security flaws.

For open source components, use tools like Snyk or Black Duck to continuously monitor for new vulnerabilities. Prioritize fixing high and critical vulnerabilities first. Configure your pipeline to automatically block builds with policy violations.

Shift Security Testing Left

Traditionally, security testing occurred at the end of the development cycle leading to long feedback loops. Shift left security testing as early as possible in your pipeline.

Static analysis and unit tests execute quickly and can catch flaws early before they compound. Run dynamic security tests like DAST during integration and staging environments when more of the application is assembled. Reserve penetration testing for production-like environments further down the pipeline.

Prioritize and fix security issues based on risk severity. Rerunning tests verifies issues are properly remediated.

Protect Your Pipeline Infrastructure

Your CI/CD pipeline itself needs to be secured just like your production environments. Restrict access to your build servers, agents, and infrastructure. Provision pipeline resources just-in-time to do work then tear them down after.

Make sure you are using trusted base images for your containers free of vulnerabilities. Continuously scan your container registries. Sign and validate images to ensure integrity. Use immutable infrastructure patterns to prevent runtime modifications.

Rotate all credentials used by your pipelines regularly. Monitor pipeline logs for anomalies and failures. Enable multi-factor authentication for your toolchain admin consoles.

Perform Compliance Checks

Many industries like healthcare and finance have regulatory compliance standards they must adhere to. Automate compliance checks as part of your pipeline to avoid manual processes.

Scan infrastructure-as-code configs for security misconfigurations early before provisioning. Check for unprotected secrets and insecure protocols. Validate policies for access controls, encryption, and data security. Doing compliance checks continuously improves your security posture over time.

Secure Your Secrets

Access keys, passwords, certificates, and tokens enable pipelines to access private resources and environments. Make sure you are securely managing these secrets.

Use a secrets management tool like Hashicorp Vault to centrally store and tightly control access to secrets. Rotate secrets automatically every 90 days or less. Never hardcode secrets – inject them only at runtime. Mask secrets from logs and outputs. Revoke access immediately for compromised secrets.

Following these best practices will help you release software faster while keeping your pipelines, infrastructure, and data secure. Adopting DevSecOps principles is key to balancing speed and security in your DevOps workflows.