Static application security testing operates as a “white box” testing approach, meaning it analyzes an application's internal workings by examining its source code, bytecode, or binary code without executing the program. The strategy allows developers to identify and address vulnerabilities early in the software development lifecycle (SDLC) before deploying the application.
A conference paper from the 2019 IEEE/ACM 41st International Conference on Software Engineering: Software Engineering in Practice notes, “SAST performs static program analysis for finding software vulnerabilities, and is different from dynamic approaches that require penetration tests. Hence, SAST can detect potential vulnerabilities that remain uncovered after in-house testing.” By scanning for common security flaws, SAST tools can flag potential issues that align with established security standards.
SAST is particularly beneficial to electronic health record (EHR) systems, patient management applications, and telehealth platforms. Incorporating SAST tools into these applications during development allows organizations to proactively identify coding errors that could lead to data breaches or unauthorized access to protected health information (PHI). For example, SAST can help ensure that input validation is properly implemented, preventing malicious users from exploiting weaknesses in the code to gain access to patient records.
Its integration into continuous integration/continuous deployment (CI/CD) pipelines allows for ongoing security assessments throughout the development process. New features can be added, existing code can be modified, and any introduced vulnerabilities can be quickly identified and addressed.
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