Contrast’s free SCA feature within CodeSec identifies vulnerable third-party libraries

Contrast Security announced that software composition analysis (SCA) is available for free in CodeSec. CodeSec offers free application security testing and SCA in a single, developer-friendly interface.

The SCA feature will enable developers to identify vulnerable third-party libraries, getting secure code moving in minutes. With a frictionless install, scanning of open source software (OSS) and actionable results, developers can start to ship code while creating a standardized software bill of materials (SBOM) to manage supply chain risk.

Built with the technology used by Contrast’s customer base, CodeSec makes developer security more efficient and accurate by delivering the following capabilities right to the developer’s laptop for free:

• Discover dependencies: Secure vulnerable libraries (in Java, Javascript, Python, Ruby, GO, PHP, .NET) in OSS with lightning speed, accurate scans (SCA), and actionable remediation guidance to ship code faster and create standardized SBOMs with ease.
• Secure your code: Optimize code security for Java, Javascript and .NET applications with scans and actionable remediation guidance, in a simple command line interface. Additionally, developers can secure GitHub pipelines with Contrast GitHub Actions for free.
• Secure your cloud native applications: Take advantage of a new application security tool for serverless environments in Amazon Web Services (AWS) Lambda Functions (Java + Python) that detects cloud-native vulnerabilities while providing actionable remediation guidance in a simple command line interface (CLI).

According to Gartner, 70% of modern software solutions contain applications that hold flaws stemming from their use of open source. Every industry, from finance, to healthcare, to governments, trust and rely on applications and APIs built with open source. With the Log4J vulnerability and the SolarWinds attack, organizations around the world are in need of generating SBOMs to understand the components in their software supply chain.

“SBOMs are a critical component of having a secure software supply chain. As part of US Executive Order 14208, the US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) includes a key directive for organizations to ‘Establish and maintain a software inventory or an SBOM,'” said Katie Norton, senior research analyst at IDC. “Free solutions for developers, like CodeSec – SCA, will play an important role in helping ramp up the adoption of SBOMs.”

Unfortunately, legacy SCA tools have fallen behind and deliver alert fatigue, delays in development, and provide little to no guidance on how to fix vulnerable libraries. A new breed of free SCA tools is needed to allow developers to implement open source security testing earlier on in the development process.

Contrast’s new SCA feature within CodeSec enables developers to identify the vulnerable libraries in OSS while providing actionable remediation guidance to ship code faster and manage software supply chain risk by allowing developers to create SBOMs with ease.

“Deploying code quickly is key in this market. That’s why current-day developers heavily rely on open source code to keep pace with the demands of companies. Those same companies are getting pressure to develop SBOMs and increase visibility into the components that make up the applications they’re creating and using each day,” said Jeff Williams, co-founder and chief technology officer at Contrast Security.

“CodeSec is the answer developers have been waiting for — a single free tool that quickly and accurately identifies vulnerabilities in custom code, open source, and serverless functions. Instead of wasting time configuring, integrating, and running multiple different security tools, CodeSec provides exactly what developers need.”, Williams continued.