Addressing Security Debt: A Strategic Approach to Application Security

With today’s cloud-native applications becoming more complex, unresolved security issues can quickly pile up and become a major headache. Whether you're already dealing with a backlog of security alerts or just beginning to implement robust security practices, the key challenge remains the same: how to cut through the noise, focus on what matters, and deal with security debt—without slowing down innovation.

If you already have security debt, this guide will help you rethink your approach from the ground up, checking each step to ensure you’re on the right track. If you’re just starting out, consider these steps as foundational principles to build a stronger security posture from day one. Let’s dive into a straightforward game plan to manage your security debt—whether you're looking to reduce what you already have or prevent it from accumulating in the first place.

1. Build a Dedicated Security Team

First things first: you need a team that’s laser-focused on security. Whether you call them the AppSec team, Product Security team, Security team, or Vulnerability team, having a dedicated group focused on tackling security issues is crucial. Why? Because relying on DevOps or DevSecOps teams alone usually isn’t enough. 

But what if you've already shifted left? It's time to ask yourself: Did I shift too far left? We often see developers, who are experts in building beautiful features, suddenly being handed the responsibility for security. It’s important to have security experts working hand-in-hand with your development teams. Developers should focus on what they do best—creating innovative features—while security experts ensure that vulnerabilities are identified and managed effectively.

Remember, trying to manage all your existing security issues without a dedicated team is like trying to empty a bathtub with a spoon—it’s nearly impossible. Shift left, but do it right—bring in the experts to ensure you’re covering all your bases.

2. Team Up with Engineering Champions

Security isn’t a solo game; you need allies. Find a champion from your engineering team who’s willing to work closely with your security folks. Get the VP of Engineering on board to prioritize your security goals.

If you’re already dealing with security debt, this partnership is crucial to prioritize the backlog of issues and integrate security goals into the existing workflow. If you’re just getting started, engaging with engineering champions early on helps establish a strong security foundation from day one. These champions can advocate for security best practices within the engineering team, making sure that new code is secure from the outset and preventing debt from accumulating in the first place.

Check out how GitHub’s AppSec team set up their ownership model to keep security front and center in this video.

3. Focus on What’s Reachable (and Fixable!)

Not every vulnerability is equally critical—some might be challenging or even impossible to exploit in your environment. The key is to focus on vulnerabilities that are actually "reachable" and pose a genuine threat. Reachability means determining which vulnerabilities can be accessed or triggered within your specific application context. By concentrating on what's reachable, you avoid wasting time on hypothetical issues and direct your resources toward fixing the vulnerabilities that matter most.

Instead of feeling overwhelmed by a mountain of security alerts, prioritize the ones that are both serious and exploitable. This way, you focus on real risks, reduce noise, and make your security efforts much more efficient.

And at Backslash, we are proud of our deep reachability capabilities. By combining this with other prioritization and contextual data, we dramatically reduce the number of issues you need to focus on, helping you take action where it matters most.

4. Set Small, Achievable Goals

Don’t try to boil the ocean—start with small, manageable goals. Pick a few security issues to tackle in the next quarter and get your engineering champion to commit to them. For example, aim to fix all the reachable direct dependencies with minor issues that also have a high risk, like Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) or high Exploit Prediction Scoring System (EPSS) scores.

By setting clear, time-bound goals, you’ll have a roadmap for progress that everyone can rally around.

5. Track Your Progress Over Time

Remember, fixing security debt isn’t an overnight thing. It takes time. Set Service Level Agreements (SLAs) to guide your efforts—like giving your team 30 days to fix critical issues. Then, track how you’re doing against those SLAs. Are you hitting your targets? Great! If not, where can you adjust?

Measuring progress over months gives you a better sense of what’s working and what’s not, so you can keep refining your approach.

6. Use Tickets and SLAs to Stay Organized

Security debt is a big challenge, but it’s easier to manage if you stay organized. Use a centralized ticketing system to log all your security tasks. This helps you prioritize them in development sprints and keep track of their status and resolution times.

With tickets and SLAs in place, everyone knows what they’re working on, and you can see exactly where you stand at any time.

7. Leverage Tools to Track Your Security Objectives

To effectively manage security debt or build a strong security foundation, you need tools that help you set, track, and achieve your security goals. These tools should enable you to identify high-priority issues that align with your organization’s objectives, such as quarterly goals or specific risk reduction targets.

Look for solutions that allow you to focus on the most impactful issues first—like high-risk direct dependencies or known vulnerabilities that are easier to fix. For example, tools with customizable issue policies, like those from Backslash, can help you set specific security priorities, such as focusing on critical vulnerabilities or prioritizing issues that directly impact your most sensitive assets.

8. Stay Alert to New Critical Issues

Of course, staying on top of new threats is just as important as fixing the old ones. Make sure your tools send you real-time alerts for new critical issues, such as those flagged by CISA as Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV).

This way, you’re always aware of the latest threats and can act quickly to address them, keeping your security posture strong.

9. Put Risks in Context and Keep Monitoring

It’s not just about fixing vulnerabilities; it’s about understanding them in the context of your specific application. To effectively manage security debt, you need to correlate vulnerabilities with how your applications are used and their potential business impact. This way, you can focus on what truly matters and allocate resources efficiently. Remember, managing security debt is an ongoing process that requires continuous monitoring and adjustment based on new and existing threats.

10. Integrate with Your CI/CD Pipelines

To make security a seamless part of your development workflow, it’s essential to integrate it into your CI/CD pipelines. This allows you to automatically detect and prioritize vulnerabilities as code is developed and deployed, catching issues early in the process. By doing so, you ensure that security checks happen continuously without slowing down your team, ultimately maintaining a secure and agile development environment.

Backslash integrates smoothly with your CI/CD pipelines, helping you automate these checks and maintain security without compromising on speed or efficiency.

Ready to Tackle Your Security Debt?

Backslash’s platform is designed to provide you with clear visibility into your security landscape, enabling you to easily identify where the real risks lie and prioritize them effectively.

We go beyond just identifying vulnerabilities; our advanced reachability analysis determines which vulnerabilities are not only present but actually reachable and exploitable within your specific application context. This approach helps you concentrate your efforts on fixing the issues that truly matter, reducing noise, and minimizing time wasted on hypothetical threats.

In addition, Backslash supports developers with remediation tools that make fixing vulnerabilities easier and more efficient. Our platform offers features like fix and update simulation to assess the impact of changes and AI-driven safe advice tailored to your development language, ensuring that security measures are integrated seamlessly into your workflow.

Ready to see it in action? Experience how Backslash can help you tackle your security debt while fostering better collaboration between your teams.

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