Vendor application security testing program from Veracode

Veracode announced the Vendor Application Security Testing (VAST) program, which provides an independent, automated, and outsourced program to help enterprises reduce the security risks associated with the use of vendor-supplied software, while strengthening vendor compliance with enterprise application security policies.

According to the 2012 PWC Security Report, up to 80 percent of third party software fails basic OWASP tests for security compliance; yet most IT organizations do not have the time, budget, internal resources, or access to vendor source code to run a meaningful vendor application security program. The result: Enterprises are taking on unbounded risk as their investment in outsourced, commercial, SaaS, mobile and open source applications increases.

“Application security testing of third party providers should be a critical element of any information security initiative,” said Joseph Feiman, Research Vice President and Gartner Fellow, Gartner. “Enterprises need to start putting pressure on their providers to request independent security verification of vendor-supplied software to fully guarantee software supply chain integrity.”

The VAST program from Veracode protects the enterprise and its software vendors by facilitating collaboration between both parties to ensure vendor-supplied software meets security and compliance requirements.

The VAST program delivers unprecedented insight into the security of third-party software without compromising a vendor’s intellectual property as Veracode can provide verification of software security without accessing source code.

“The vast majority of enterprise software is not designed or built with security in mind,” said Bob Brennan, CEO of Veracode. “Veracode can provide immediate insight into the security of the software that runs an organization’s business, and help its software providers remediate those flaws that subject it to being attacked.”