Shift-Left Security:
5 Ways to Embed 
Security in Your
DevOps Pipeline

Imagine you're building an apartment. You've been at it for six months, and you're done constructing the entire building. The builder would've ideally liked another month for things to have gone more smoothly, but you're in a bit of a rush . However, you receive a very bad shock at the time of the final inspection - there's water seepage and inadequate waterproofing. You now must break open walls/the terrace, access the source of the leak, fix it properly, ensure no damage to the electrical wiring, and then re-plaster, re-tile, re-paint. Slow, expensive, and very frustrating - this is the traditional way.

But what if you had shifted left during construction?

It's common knowledge that DevSecOps is a methodology that integrates security practices into every stage of the software development lifecycle (SDLC). In this context, 'shift left' is a security best practice where you implement testing and security into the earliest phases of the software / application development process. It’s called 'shift left' because it moves the security or testing component to the left (earlier stages) in the SDLC timeline, instead of right at the end, which is the traditional approach. This reduces risk, speeds delivery, and simply builds stronger systems. So, in the earlier construction example, shifting left would mean inspecting for issues during construction, so that problems are caught and fixed early, and the project moves smoothly as planned.

It's Cybersecurity Awareness Month, and this blog explores five practical ways your IT team can embed security early.

1. Secrets & Credential Scanning Early (Pre-Commit / Pull Request)

When developers write code, they often need 'secrets' (sensitive information that prove their identity and grant access to systems) like a database password, token, or API keys. Now, if a developer accidentally includes one of these elements into the source code and commits it to version control (GitHub or GitLab, for example), it is very risky. It can be seen by others who have access to the repository and can also potentially be discovered by attackers. This is one of the simplest yet most dangerous oversights that can happen, and here's how you can avoid them:

• Use secret scanning tools (like Gitleaks, TruffleHog), They automatically scan your codebase and commit to detecting such values and block them.
• Use push protections or commit hooks that block secrets from entering the main branch.
• Customize scanning rules so that they match your environment (e.g., what constitutes a ‘secret’ in your stack) and ignore safe files or folders.

2. Static Application Security Testing (SAST) Right in the CI/CD Workflow

The ‘Static’ in Static Application Security Testing means that it tests source code without running it, which is like authors proofreading their work before hitting the publish button – critical, if you ask me. It scans the application’s source code to check for common security flaws, such as SQL injection. XSS, or unsafe deserialization. The key is to integrate SAST early inside the CI/CD workflow  and not wait until after deployment to check for vulnerabilities.

• Run SAST after code compiles and before merging pull requests.
• Use fast, security scans in early stages, so that developers can get near-instant feedback.
• Fail builds or follow-up with a manual review if you find critical security flaws. Give developers clear reports so that they can come up with efficient fixes that work.

3. Software Composition Analysis (SCA) & Dependency / Open-Source Scanning

Modern apps rely heavily on third-party libraries, open-source packages, containers, etc. Vulnerabilities in those assets are a big vector.

• Automatically generate a Software Bill of Materials (SBOM) for each build.
• Use SCA tools (e.g., Trivy, OWASP Dependency-Check, etc.) to scan dependencies for known CVEs, license issues, or deprecated/unsafe components.
• Include container image scanning: the base OS, patch levels, misconfigurations, etc. Also, serverless function scanning if your stack uses serverless.

4. IaC (Infrastructure as Code) Security & Configuration Checks

Typically, the process of setting up setting up infrastructure (which can be anything from servers to storage to networks) is manual. You click through cloud dashboards, configure Virtual Machines, etc. But Infrastructure as Code (IaC) makes processes faster, repeatable and consistent. With IaC, you write code or scripts that automatically provisions and manages infrastructure, using tools like Terraform or AWS CloudFormation. However, security is a concern here as well. Because IaC is just code, even a small misconfiguration can leave a gaping security hole which attackers can prey on. For example, if you accidentally leave an S3 bucket public, a lot of your customer data may be exposed.

• Scan IaC with tools like Checkov or Terrascan before deploying, so that risky configurations can be flagged.
• Write security rules into the pipeline, which is Policy as Code. Taking our S3 Bucket example, one rule can be “no public S3 buckets”. If the script tries to create one, the build fails.
• Version control your IaC, perform peer-reviews on any changes, and ensure drift detection.

5. Combine Scans, Enable Feedback Loops & Prioritization

Your teams can run individual tools or scan in isolation all you want, but when you combine certain scans intelligently, give their results back to developers (right in their workflow where it'll help them the most) and prioritizing security issues is what'll really help you shift left properly and make improvements.

• Use multiple scans because they check for different types of vulnerabilities. SAST (scans source code for flaws), DAST (tests for vulnerabilities while the app is running) SCA (checks third-party libraries) and many more.
• Instead of giving developers a giant report of results after a week, integrate the results of these scans directly into their workflow. This makes giving feedback fast.
• Lastly, prioritize the vulnerabilities you've found. Not all findings are equally dangerous.

Why Shifting Left Matters

• Reduced Cost & Risk: Why would anyone want to fix vulnerabilities late, after knowing how expensive they are (especially after deployment or production)? Earlier detection means less damage done.
• Faster Releases with Safety: When you check for security in earlier stages, the chances of last-minute unpleasant surprises or stalled releases (because of a security issue) drops sharply.
• Stronger Security Culture: When developers and operations teams see how seriously the security team is taking security via shifting left, it helps drive home its importance and can lead to shared responsibility, where security becomes part of everyone’s thinking.
• Alignment with Best Practices / Compliance: Many industry and regulatory standards (PCI, GDPR, etc.) already expect secure development and risk management. Shift-left helps here.

Checklist: Embedding Security Early in Your DevOps Pipeline

Here’s a quick checklist that teams can use to assess or guide their shift-left security adoption:

• Use secrets-scanning in pre-commit / pull requests, with push protection and commit hooks to stop secrets before they enter the main branch.
• Integrate Static Application Security Testing (SAST) into CI builds and PR reviews to catch code flaws early.
• Perform Software Composition Analysis (SCA) on dependencies, generate SBOMs, and scan container/serverless images for vulnerabilities.
• Scan Infrastructure as Code (IaC) and enforce configuration policies to prevent misconfigurations before deployment.
• Use multiple types of scans (SAST, DAST, SCA, container, IaC) because each one detects different types of vulnerabilities, and make their results visible in developer workflows.
• Prioritize vulnerabilities by severity and business impact, and block critical ones before merging or deploying.
• Monitor key metrics such as remediation time, number of issues, and false positives to continuously improve scanning and policies.
• Conduct periodic security-awareness training and knowledge-sharing sessions so developers understand common pitfalls and secure coding practices.

The Takeaway

Shifting security left isn’t a project with a fixed end, it’s a journey. By embedding security scanning, checks, feedback, and policies early in your DevOps pipeline, you reduce risk, build trust, and speed up delivery. In this Cybersecurity Awareness Month, it’s a great moment to commit (or double-down) on making secure development everyone’s everyday responsibility.

With over 12 years of experience serving 2500+ enterprises, Cloud4C offers a comprehensive suite of DevSecOps and CI/CD Security Solutions designed to help businesses achieve greater delivery agility with continuous security enablement and automatic security of code. Talk to our experts today if you want to know more about our CI/CD Security Solutions.