5 tips on how Developers, DevOps and security teams can work together

As we all know, team collaboration can sometimes be a bit complicated. Especially when different teams in the organization strive to achieve their own individual goals. This is where new organizational practices, such as DevOps and DevSecOps, have paved the path for us to work together and achieve our mutual goals. Take a look at these three trying to make it work…

Triple Therapy for your Dev, Sec AND Ops Teams

1. Hacking attacks ARE everywhere
2. Developers need DevOps capabilities
3. Code must be secure
4. Build trust between teams
5. Encourage ongoing learning and development

1. Hacking attacks ARE everywhere

While we are developing our software, in most cases, developers will test the application for functionality and not really pay attention to security. We have tons of automation and QA teams, but we also need the DevOps team to secure the pipeline and the security team to make sure we’re securing our development process – such as our 3rd party dependencies.

2. Developers need DevOps capabilities

First and foremost, developers are focused on their ability to deliver software faster. When your code is modular it’s easier to maintain it – i.e. developing microservices rather than monolithic code. This requires basic understanding of container technologies which developers need to acquire.

3. Code must be secure

Today, the development cycle is the new target. There is a shift from attacking the application to security breaches through code – via dependencies, 3rd party tools. “Code should be secured. A total of 44% of developers cannot code securely. That’s nearly half! Developers need to work with security teams to scan code for malicious content, constantly.” *Forbes – 5 Reasons DevOps And Security Need To Work Together. The shift left methodology allows us to detect, analyze and address security issues as early as possible in the development process.

4. Build trust between teams

When you build trust between teams, you create “care”. Ultimately we want developers, security and DevOps teams to work together with the same goals. Building as much trust as possible can make it happen. This is your opportunity to be creative, introducing a culture of trust is different in every organization.

According to a VMware-commissioned study “senior leadership focuses more on strengthening the relationship between development and security than it did two years ago”.

5. Encourage ongoing learning and development

Technology is constantly evolving, and it’s important that teams stay up-to-date with the latest developments in their field. Encourage team members to attend training sessions and conferences, and to share their learnings with the wider team. Foster a culture of ongoing learning and development, and encourage team members to explore new technologies and approaches. – Thanks ChatGPT 😉

That’s it! Now it’s time for you to collaborate with your teams.