Comment by 999900000999
2 months ago
It's not an easy problem to solve.
Doing it the right way would create friction, developers might need to actually understand what the code is doing rather than pulling in random libraries.
Try explaining to your CTO that development will slow down to verify the entire dependency chain.
I'm more thinking C# or Java. If Microsoft or Oracle is providing a library you can hope it's safe.
You *could* have a development ecosystem called Safe C# which only comes with vetted libraries and doesn't allow anything else.
I'm sure other solutions already exist though.
Why?
This is a standard practice in most places I have worked, CI/CD only allowed to use internal repos, and libraries are only added after clearance.
Except that "clearance" invariably consists of bureaucratic rubber stamping and actually decreases security by making it harder and slower to fix newly discovered vulnerabilities.
Depends on the skills of the respective DevOps security team.
There are also tools that break CI/CD based on CVE reports from existing dependencies.
> Doing it the right way would create friction, developers might need to actually understand what the code is doing rather than pulling in random libraries.
Then let's add friction. Developers understanding code is what they should be doing.
CTOs understand the high cost of ransomware and disruption of service.