The state of code security in 2024

August 2024 Information Security


Paul Meyer

The 2024 State of Code Security survey, sponsored by OpenText and produced by Dark Reading, reveals that organisations have continued to shore up application security defences over the last year. This is according to OpenText Premier Partner iOCO Application Management.

“This trend is, in essence, a response to rising concerns over software supply chain security issues, vulnerability exploits, and other threats to application security,” says Paul Meyer, iOCO Security Solutions Executive.”

The report highlights the high percentage of organisations that have adopted a formal programmatic approach to securing internally developed apps while deploying a range of other mechanisms to protect commercial, third-party, and open-source applications.

“The survey of 107 IT, security, and application development professionals reveals broad improvements in enterprise patch management practices and testing and assessing business-critical apps, third-party apps, and Web applications. The report notes the growing use of containerised applications, microservices architectures, and application programming interfaces (APIs) to connect applications and services. This is said to be fuelling new security concerns and attempts to address them in many businesses,” says Meyer.

Many companies were observed to be stepping up their efforts in identifying, assessing, and addressing risks stemming from direct and indirect code dependencies. “Most respondents were reported to appear confident about their AppSec capabilities despite several red flags, such as a relative lack of focus on issues presenting the biggest threats, namely a growing gap between IT security teams and application developers on AppSec matters and a lack of funding and resources,” he adds.

Key takeaways from the survey

• 44% of organisations have been practising formal, programmatic application security for one to five years.

• 23% of respondents say their biggest application security risk is attackers with deep knowledge of application vulnerabilities.

• 72% of those surveyed focus primarily on securing business-critical applications.

• 55% of organisations keep up to date on patching their most important applications.

• 74% consider their dependency scanning/software component analysis (SCA) practices very or somewhat effective.

“In conclusion, the survey shows that an increasing number of organisations over the previous year have adopted DevSecOps practices and improved patch management capabilities. Additionally, they are conducting more testing, monitoring, and assessments of their business-critical, third-party, and Web applications. Most respondents were said to appear confident about their application security posture. However, the survey shows a disconnect between what IT and security leaders perceive as the biggest app security risks and what they focus on. A lack of funding and shortage of security skills are highlighted as a gap in application security knowledge between developers and IT security teams – which are said to be undermining some of the progress organisations made last year,” concludes Meyer.

For more information, contact iOCO Applications Management, +27 11 417 8594, Heidi.Ziegelmeier@iOCO.tech, https://ioco.tech/




Share this article:
Share via emailShare via LinkedInPrint this page



Further reading:

Highest increase in global cyberattacks in two years
Information Security News & Events
Check Point Global Research released new data on Q2 2024 cyber-attack trends, noting a 30% global increase in Q2 2024, with Africa experiencing the highest average weekly per organisation.

Read more...
There is a SaaS for everything, but at what cost, especially to SMEs?
Editor's Choice Information Security Security Services & Risk Management
Relying on SaaS platforms presents significant cybersecurity risks as the number of providers in your landscape increases, expanding your attack surface. It is important to assess the strength of the SaaS providers in your chain.

Read more...
Addressing today’s mining challenges: cyber risks beyond IT
Editor's Choice Information Security Mining (Industry)
Despite the mining industry’s operational technology systems being vulnerable to cyberattacks, many decision-makers still see these threats as purely an IT issue, even though a breach could potentially disrupt mining operations.

Read more...
Get proactive with cybersecurity
Information Security
The ability to respond effectively to a cybersecurity breach is critical, but the missing piece of the puzzle is a thorough, proactive evaluation to ascertain weaknesses and identify any hidden threats.

Read more...
How to effectively share household devices
Smart Home Automation Information Security
Sharing electronic devices within a household is unavoidable. South African teens spend over eight hours per day online, making device sharing among family members commonplace. Fortunately, there are methods to guarantee safe usage for everyone.

Read more...
How to securely manage your digital footprint
Information Security Training & Education
Managing your online presence is critical to safeguarding your privacy and security. It is imperative to take a proactive approach, including using robust cybersecurity best practices.

Read more...
What is the level of safety and integrity of the software supply chain?
Information Security IoT & Automation
Organisations are embracing AppSec practices and focusing on their software security posture. However, they highlight that insufficient funding and security resources, plus a disconnect between developers and security teams, remain major roadblocks.

Read more...
Cybercriminals target financial service providers to get at sensitive client data
Information Security
According to Ryan van de Coolwijk, Product Head for cyber at iTOO Special Risks, hackers target financial service providers because they hold sensitive client information that unauthorised individuals could use for fraudulent activities.

Read more...
Fortinet establishes new point-of-presence in South Africa
News & Events Information Security
Fortinet has announced the launch of a new dedicated point-of-presence (POP) in Isando, Johannesburg, to expand the reach and availability of Fortinet Unified SASE for customers across South Africa and southern African countries.

Read more...
New tools for investigation and robust infrastructure security
News & Events Information Security
Cybereason continues to enhance its security platform, with recent updates introducing improvements in file search operations, investigation query results, and cloud workload protection, providing more granular data and faster key artefact identification.

Read more...