SSDLC Practices
SecOps vs. AppSec vs. DevSecOps
The Secure Software Development Lifecycle (SSDL) is a set of practices and processes designed to integrate security into every phase of software development. Depending on a company’s unique needs, different security approaches such as SecOps, AppSec, and DevSecOps can be employed. Each of these offers increasing levels of security integration and comprehensiveness, allowing organizations to adopt the model that best fits their goals.
SecOps
SecOps (Operational Security Integration) is centered around providing top-tier security guidance to various teams (development, DevOps, infrastructure) without necessarily building or maintaining solutions. SecOps professionals focus primarily on security operations and threat detection, serving as internal security experts with an attacker’s mindset. By staying proactive, SecOps helps teams continuously improve their security practices, creating a security-first culture by advising teams on best practices.
SecOps is ideal for organizations looking to enhance security oversight without deeply embedding security into the development process. It’s a practical starting point for companies that need to improve operational security and general security posture without overhauling their development workflows.
AppSec
AppSec (Application-Level Security) is focused on identifying, remediating, and preventing security vulnerabilities within the development process of web, mobile, and desktop applications. AppSec professionals work closely with development teams to ensure that security is considered from the ground up. By integrating security best practices into the coding process, AppSec ensures that applications are resilient against attacks, both during and after deployment.
For organizations where the primary focus is on creating secure applications, AppSec plays a critical role in detecting and mitigating risks. AppSec professionals collaborate closely with development teams, making it a more integrated approach than SecOps. This model is ideal for businesses aiming to secure their applications without fully transforming their development operations.
DevSecOps
DevSecOps offers the most complete and integrated approach to Secure Software Development Lifecycle (SSDL). By embedding security directly into development and operations workflows, it enhances both traditional SecOps and AppSec models. Our DevSecOps practices prioritize early security integration in the development process and automate it through CI/CD pipelines. Through close collaboration between development, operations, and security teams, we ensure that security is embedded into every stage, enabling organizations to establish a robust, continuous framework across the entire software lifecycle.
This model enables organizations to be agile while maintaining robust security measures, where security vulnerabilities are detected and resolved in real time. DevSecOps is the ideal solution for companies seeking to build a culture of security that spans all teams and phases of development, offering the most comprehensive protection.
Finding the Right Fit
While DevSecOps offers the most complete integration of security, not every company requires or is ready for such a comprehensive approach. SecOps is a great starting point for improving operational security, while AppSec offers focused security for application development. Each service can find its place within a company’s security strategy depending on its specific needs, resources, and level of security maturity.