Top 9 Software Supply Chain Security Tools

Imagine this: an attacker sneaks a tiny backdoor into software that hundreds of companies use. It sounds like a plot from a spy movie, but it’s a real threat that recently impacted major Linux distributions through a compromised utility tool, XZ Utils. 

So far, in 2024, over 35 billion known records have been breached. The Linux attack, potentially in action and undetected since 2021, is just one of the many that highlight the alarming proliferation of supply chain attacks. Given the highest CVSS rating, a 10, the attack compromised XZ Utils versions 5.6.0 and 5.6.1. 

With this backdoor, bad actors can bypass authentication and remotely manipulate entire systems, escalating into catastrophic breaches. Now more than ever, it's important to implement robust security solutions that lock down the software supply chain.

What is a Software Supply Chain Security Tool?

A software supply chain security tool is a specialized solution to protect your DevSecOps pipeline from supply chain attacks. It identifies and helps mitigate vulnerabilities like dependency and open-source issues, misconfigurations, insider threats, and license compliance gaps. Aside from identifying risks, these tools enforce security policies and guarantee compliance throughout the software development lifecycle (SDLC) by analyzing every component – especially those sourced from third parties. 



They work by scanning codebases for vulnerabilities within packages and libraries, checking that all code and dependencies meet security policies before integration. If these tools identify a known risk, they provide real-time alerts to facilitate a swift response.  

Types of Software Supply Chain Security Tools

• Container Security: These tools can control access to containerized applications, scan container images for vulnerabilities, and monitor user behavior to spot abnormal activity or signs of unauthorized access. 

• Software Composition Analysis (SCA): SCA tools analyze all open-source components and third-party libraries in your software. They are employed during the development and build phases to detect third-party vulnerabilities.

• Software Bill of Materials (SBOM): SBOM tools scan your repos and inventory all open-source components and their dependencies. They usually provide the associated open-source licenses and vulnerabilities to help users determine the security and legal risks associated with open-source usage.

• Source Code Manager misconfiguration detection: Understanding the security of your CI/CD pipeline is a critical component of supply chain security. Misconfigurations allow attackers to manipulate the SDLC to insert backdoors or perform other malicious activities.

• Secret Scanning: These tools scan codebases and Git repositories to detect secrets. These secrets can be sensitive information that shouldn’t be exposed, including passwords, API keys, or access tokens. You can integrate secret scanning tools into your CI/CD and automate them to run across the entire SDLC.

Benefits of Software Supply Chain Security Tools

Software supply chain security tools bolster your organization's security posture and support compliance and business continuity. 77% of CISOs consider software supply chain security a more significant blind spot for AppSec than Gen AI or open source. By providing increased visibility over the SDLC, these tools address one of the common concerns in cybersecurity – third-party risks and vulnerabilities. 

These components, sourced from external suppliers, may not have undergone the same security scrutiny as in-house developed software. The increased transparency these tools provide helps CISOs monitor security scans more efficiently and mitigate risks proactively.  



Key Features to Look for in Software Supply Chain Security Tools

Accurate Detection Techniques

Software supply chain security tools leverage advanced detection technologies like SAST, DAST, and IAST to find all relevant vulnerabilities. These methods cover everything from analyzing raw code with SAST to live application behavior with DAST and IAST.

Customizable Scanning Policies

Configurable scanning policies allow for tailored security checks that fit your organizational needs, such as excluding specific files or targeting particular branches. This customization aligns security with your unique workflows and requirements.

Integration Capabilities

Seamless integration allows developers to maintain productivity while adhering to security protocols within their existing development environments. Jit effectively meets this need by integrating security directly into the platforms that developers already use, such as GitHub. This integration embeds security measures right where developers work – providing real-time feedback and alerts.



API Security Testing

With the proliferation of APIs, security testing targeted at these interfaces is critical. Tools that offer automated scanning for common API vulnerabilities, such as improper asset management, insufficient logging and monitoring, and broken function level authorization, help protect against API-specific security risks.

Regular Updates and Vulnerability Feeds

These tools must stay updated with the latest threat intelligence and vulnerability feeds. These features help to protect against emerging threats like zero-day exploits by continually refining detection algorithms based on the latest security research.

Top 9 Software Supply Chain Security Tools

Container Security

1. Anchore



Anchore generates and manages high-fidelity Software Bills of Material (SBOMs). It automatically scans container images and code repositories to create detailed SBOMs that adhere to standards and include extensive metadata. This metadata can identify secrets, file permissions, security misconfiguration vulnerabilities, and malware, offering a comprehensive overview of software components and their security status. 

Best For: Well-suited for organizations with complex software supply chains, including various open-source and proprietary components. 

Review: “Very powerful, policy capabilities are a key differentiator which enables it to support real-world CI/CD workflows.”



2. Trivy



Trivy can quickly scan operating system packages and application dependencies, including significant platforms like Alpine Linux, Red Hat, Ubuntu, and standard programming language libraries. It integrates into continuous integration workflows without a hitch, supporting environments such as Travis CI, CircleCI, and Jenkins. This integration is coupled with its fast scanning capabilities – completing initial scans in seconds.

Best For: It is ideal for development teams looking to incorporate robust security measures without slowing down operations.

SCA Tools

3. OSV-Scanner



The OSV-scanner from Google leverages the open-source and widely supported OSV database. By connecting directly with a project’s dependencies and the vulnerabilities that affect them, OSV-scanner allows for fewer but more actionable vulnerability notifications. The scanner simplifies remediation by suggesting minimal version updates with maximum security impact.

Best For: The OSV-Scanner is well-suited for those working on open-source projects.



4. NPM-Audit



NPM-Audit identifies known vulnerabilities, calculates their impact, and suggests appropriate remediation steps. The tool is customizable, allowing users to specify the minimum vulnerability level (with the --audit-level parameter) they want to flag.  After scanning, NPM-Audit provides a detailed report of vulnerabilities, which includes remediation paths and links to detailed advisories.

Best For: It's ideal for those developing Node.js applications or working with any JavaScript project that relies on npm packages.



5. Spectral 



Spectral scans your codebase, configurations, and public repositories for vulnerabilities. It can identify vulnerabilities like exposed API keys, credentials, and security flaws in real-time and supports various languages and tech stacks. Aside from seamlessly integrating into CI/CD pipelines for automated scanning, Spectral also provides customizable policies and actionable reports to help teams take a proactive approach to security. 

Best For: It best suits teams looking to strengthen their data security policy and gain immediate security insights.

Review: "Spectral is a reliable gatekeeper for our secrets…Spectral is easy to set up and use and provides valuable insights into sensitive issues.”

SBOM

6. Syft



Syft is an open-source tool that helps you generate detailed inventories of the software components within your file systems and container images. The tool identifies and catalogs all libraries, dependencies, and packages within your system so your team gains visibility into every component and can more easily spot and fix vulnerabilities. 

Best For: DevOps teams looking to ensure compliance with licensing requirements.

CI/CD misconfigurations 

7. Legitify



Legitify is an open-source security tool that scans code repositories and infrastructure configurations to spot security gaps. It integrates with various version control systems, such as Git, GitHub and BitBucket, and offers automated scanning and reporting that enables dev teams to quickly find vulnerabilities and misconfigurations in their CI/CD pipelines. 

Best For: Teams looking to strengthen their application security posture from end to end.

Secret Scanning

8. Gitleaks



Gitleaks is a powerful open-source tool built to scan repositories without heavy installations. Highly trusted in the security community, Gitleaks supports many secret types and allows for easy customization of detection rules through its gitleaks.toml configuration file.

Best For: It is an invaluable tool for anyone looking to secure their git repositories from accidental leaks of sensitive information like passwords or API keys.

Review: “I found Gitleaks to be the easiest tool to integrate; it has a big community and works with many different types of secrets.” 



9. TruffleHog



TruffleHog’s scanning capabilities go beyond just code repositories to uncover secrets hidden in comments, Docker images, and more. It helps prevent data leaks with pre-commit and pre-receive hooks that check data before it becomes part of the codebase. TruffleHog continuously tracks and verifies the status of different key types, ensuring effective remediation and offering guidance on key rotation.

Best For: It is suited for teams working in complex project environments.

Review: “TruffleHog is seamless. It has implemented a great usability component around a complicated-to-use open tool set. And what makes this great is I don’t need to think about it.”

A Stronger Software Supply Chain

The best way to protect against software supply chain threats is to bolster your security strategy with various specific tools that cover every step of the SDLC. This way, you can address a more comprehensive range of vulnerabilities, project environments, and teams. 

But the more security tools and controls you add, the more work you give your already overloaded dev team. ASPM tools like Jit, which provide flexible security orchestration for all your favorite open-source security tools, enable you to establish continuous security efficiently and without overhead. Jit implements software supply chain security controls like SCA, container security, SBOM, and SCM misconfiguration detection. Explore more here.