What is application security posture management?

Introduction

Application security posture management (ASPM) refers to the continuous process of assessing, monitoring, and improving the security posture of an application throughout its development and operational lifecycle. By identifying vulnerabilities, improper configurations, and security risks, ASPM enables organizations to safeguard their applications against cyber threats.

Why is application security posture management important?

With modern applications relying heavily on various components—including open source software—maintaining a strong security posture is critical. ASPM helps organizations address potential weaknesses in their applications, minimizing the risk of security breaches that could expose sensitive data or compromise system integrity. By continuously assessing the application’s posture, security teams can proactively mitigate risks, implement patches, and ensure that their software aligns with best practices and regulatory requirements.

Open source software and ASPM

Given that over 90% of modern applications incorporate open source software, managing the security posture of open source components is essential. Open source software is often embedded deeply within application stacks (think: dependencies), and vulnerabilities in these components can have a cascading effect across entire systems. As part of ASPM, organizations need to monitor the security status of open source dependencies and ensure they adhere to secure development practices.

Many open source packages are maintained by volunteer (often unpaid) maintainers, and security updates may not be as timely as proprietary software. This is why incorporating open source security into ASPM involves continuous threat monitoring, vulnerability assessments, and collaboration with open source maintainers to identify and resolve risks.

(Tidelift is taking a unique approach to solve this challenge by partnering with the maintainers of thousands of the most-relied-upon open source packages and paying them to implement industry-leading secure software development practices and document the practices they follow. The result is a unique source of cross-ecosystem threat intelligence that organizations use to minimize cybersecurity risks.)

The four key components of ASPM

1. Continuous monitoring and assessment: ASPM requires real-time monitoring to detect security issues as they arise. This includes monitoring for newly discovered vulnerabilities in both proprietary and open source software components. Automated tools that continuously monitor code repositories, software dependencies, and configurations are essential for maintaining visibility across the entire application stack.

2. Risk prioritization: not all vulnerabilities are equal, and ASPM enables organizations to prioritize the most critical risks. Open source vulnerabilities, in particular, may pose higher risks due to widespread usage. By analyzing the severity and likelihood of being exploited, organizations can allocate resources to address the most pressing issues.

3. Integration with software development lifecycle (SDLC): ASPM must be integrated into the SDLC to ensure that security practices are enforced from the development phase to deployment, and ongoing operation. For applications that rely on open source, this includes evaluating the security of open source libraries, packages, and frameworks early in the process.

4. Collaboration with open source maintainers: open source software security relies heavily on the actions of project maintainers. As part of ASPM, organizations should engage with maintainers, report vulnerabilities responsibly, and contribute to patching efforts. Collaborating with the open source community helps ensure that critical vulnerabilities are addressed quickly, reducing the security risks within applications. Without direct input from maintainers, several specific aspects of open source software security and maintenance cannot be fully understood, such as: two-factor authentication, code peer review, long term maintenance planning (succession planning), documented security policies, and more. 
   
   Even more so, organizations should pay open source maintainers. With reliable income, maintainers are often able to go above and beyond to add even more security to their projects, and to the ecosystem. (Learn more about how Tidelift and our paying customers partner with and pay open source maintainers to secure their open source projects.) 

The role of open source security in ASPM

Open source software presents unique challenges for ASPM, given the diversity of ecosystems (e.g., Python, JavaScript, Java) and the decentralized nature of development. To effectively manage the security posture of open source components, organizations need to focus on:

• Vulnerability tracking: constantly updating the security status of open source dependencies.

• Patch management: ensuring timely patching of known vulnerabilities.

• Policy enforcement: implementing strict security, licensing, and maintenance policies for selecting and using open source libraries in development.

Organizations that fail to integrate open source security into ASPM expose themselves to risks such as supply chain attacks, which can exploit weak links in open source dependencies.

Conclusion

Application security posture management is crucial for modern organizations developing software applications, particularly those leveraging open source software. By integrating ASPM into the development lifecycle and actively monitoring the security of open source components, organizations can reduce their exposure to cyber threats and ensure the integrity of their applications.