Application security (AppSec) is important to all industries, and it’s critical in the public sector, which encompasses government agencies and their suppliers.
Increasingly, public sector software applications, websites, and supply chains are at risk of cyber attacks, data breaches, cyber espionage, hacks, and more. To counteract these persistent threats, government agencies and contractors need AppSec tools to improve software quality—including security and safety—while achieving compliance, increasing productivity, and minimizing costs and time to market.
Improve software quality
Software quality includes security, reliability, and safety.
Security and reliability
Unpatched vulnerabilities and unmitigated weaknesses in application code are easy to exploit. The effort and risks required to exploit software are low and the rewards are high. 90% of security incidents result from exploits against defects in software.
Creating an asymmetric advantage by detecting and remediating vulnerabilities and weaknesses in applications has a material impact on deterring adversaries and preventing successful attacks.
- Protect data and privacy and avoid data leakage on websites, address and mitigate unresolved software weaknesses and vulnerabilities (technical debt), and meet regulatory standards and guidelines.
- Identify open source components including where open source code comes from, when it was updated, and what is known about the community that supports it. The U.S. federal government requires virtually all its branches and departments to track and secure open source code.
- Protect mission-critical system investments by ensuring that autonomous ground, air, and sea systems, as well as the dynamic, end-to-end, network-centric warfare ecosystem (network of networks), have highly reliable and secure application software.
Safety
In today’s world of cyber attacks, government agencies and contractors must demonstrate that a system is secure and reliable before claiming that it’s safe. Safety is critical for commercial aviation, military aircraft, spacecraft, weapons systems, and medical devices.
- Protect people and systems such as Internet of Things (IoT) devices that, if compromised via exploitation of the software that enables and controls them, could result in physical harm or death.
- Improve transparency by using software composition analysis to understand what’s in open source code and providing a software Bill of Materials (BOM or SBOM).
Achieve compliance
Meet government regulatory guidance and compliance goals associated with security, reliability, data protection, privacy, and safety by finding and mitigating weaknesses and vulnerabilities. AppSec tools can provide detailed reports listing the specific rules and categories of each standard that the tools address.
Increase productivity and efficiency
Finding defects faster frees up developers’ time.
- Automate all DevOps processes with quality and security checkers under the hood. Automation increases productivity, efficiency, and scalability, and enables teams to complete more programs and projects in the same amount of time—it’s like bringing a spell checker to developers.
- Speed time to market by reducing the time it takes to test each new release by at least four to six hours per risk.
- Achieve a long-term competitive advantage by fielding next-generation systems and turning derivatives and future generations faster.
Minimize costs and realize a quick ROI
A direct result of increasing productivity and efficiency is cost avoidance and a quick return on investment (ROI).
According to “The Cost of Poor Software Quality in the U.S.: A 2022 Report,” vulnerabilities often stem from simple software coding errors. Typically, there are an average of 25 errors per 1,000 lines of code (NIST 2016). Reducing software vulnerabilities and weaknesses ultimately results in a quick ROI and long-term cost savings.
- Save dollars per line of code as well as time by developing code more cost-effectively.
- Prevent costly, high-profile breaches by lowering future risk exposure attributable to exploitable software.
- Reduce labor hours by mitigating costly post-deployment malfunctions.
For example, a software efficiency pilot project commissioned by a defense contractor measured time saved in root cause analysis, defect identification, recoding, and retest. The result was a savings of more than US$1M and a team efficiency gain of ~20%.
Partner with a leader that understands the public sector
Recognized by independent analysts including Gartner® and Forrester® as a leader in AppSec testing, Black Duck® is a global company and the largest solution provider in the AppSec testing industry, and we are committed to investing in research and development.
The Black Duck team has military and other public sector experience, and Black Duck public sector customers include the U.S. Army, Navy, and Air Force; all top federal and defense contractors; civilian agencies; and the intelligence community.
Black Duck also supports cross-sector-enabling technologies such as IoT for embedded and industrial controls, the cloud and containers, and artificial intelligence (AI), as well as critical infrastructure sectors including:
- Financial Services
- Healthcare
- Energy
- Information technology (IT)
- Smart cities
Build compliance, quality, and security into software with speed and efficiency
Static analysis (SAST)
Find and fix security weaknesses and quality issues in code as it is being developed.
Learn more about SASTInteractive analysis (IAST)
Software composition
analysis (SCA)
Find and fix known security vulnerabilities and license compliance issues in open source and third-party code.
Learn more about SCAFuzz testing
Test common APIs and protocols on actively running applications for weaknesses and vulnerabilities.
Learn more about fuzz testingDynamic analysis (DAST)
Training
Access interactive courseware designed to help developers learn as they code and implement secure coding best practices.
Learn more about security training
Let us help you navigate the complex public sector compliance landscape
Many Black Duck employees serve or have served as subject matter experts for committees, boards, working groups, programs, and projects related to AppSec standards, policies, and regulatory guidelines.
Black Duck DevSecOps tools can help federal agencies and government contractors comply with laws, regulatory guidance, policies, and standards related to AppSec, software quality, data protection, and privacy. Avoid exploits by finding and fixing weaknesses and vulnerabilities, and get detailed reports listing the specific rules and categories of each standard that the tools address.
Learn how to buy AppSec tools for the public sector
Federal agencies and government contractors can acquire Black Duck tools directly from Black Duck or on U.S. General Services Administration Multiple Award Schedule Information Technology (GSA MAS IT previously known as IT Schedule 70) through a U.S. government supplier, which can help speed the procurement process.
Connect with a Black Duck public sector software security and quality expert to get a software demo, free trial, or quote.
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