TL;DR
Using open source libraries is great, but they can introduce security risks. This checklist helps you quickly assess and mitigate those risks.
1. Check the Project’s Reputation
- Stars & Forks: A higher number of stars on GitHub (or similar platforms) generally indicates wider use and scrutiny, but isn’t a guarantee.
- Community Activity: Look at recent commits, issues, and pull requests. A lively community suggests ongoing maintenance and bug fixes.
- Maintainers: Who are the people responsible for the project? Are they known in the cyber security community?
- Security Reports: Does the project have a dedicated security page or policy outlining how vulnerabilities are handled?
2. Review Licensing
- Permissive Licenses (MIT, Apache 2.0): Generally allow you to use, modify and distribute the code freely. Be aware of any obligations (e.g., including copyright notices).
- Copyleft Licenses (GPL): Require that derivative works also be licensed under GPL. Understand the implications for your project.
3. Dependency Analysis
- Direct Dependencies: These are libraries you explicitly include in your project.
- Transitive Dependencies: These are dependencies *of* your direct dependencies. They can be harder to track but pose equal risks.
- Use a Dependency Scanner: Tools like
npm audit(for Node.js),pip check(for Python) orbundler-audit (for Ruby) identify known vulnerabilities in your dependencies.npm audit
4. Vulnerability Scanning
- Static Analysis: Tools scan the code for potential security flaws without running it. Examples include SonarQube, Bandit (Python), or ESLint with security rules.
- Dynamic Analysis: Tools analyze the code while it's running to identify runtime vulnerabilities.
- Regular Scanning: Integrate vulnerability scanning into your CI/CD pipeline for continuous monitoring.
5. Keep Libraries Updated
- Automated Dependency Updates: Use tools like Dependabot (GitHub) or Renovate Bot to automatically create pull requests when new versions of dependencies are released.
- Monitor Security Advisories: Subscribe to security mailing lists and advisories for the libraries you use.
- Test After Updating: Always test your application thoroughly after updating a library to ensure compatibility and prevent regressions.
6. Code Review
- Focus on Security-Sensitive Areas: Pay close attention to code that handles user input, authentication, authorization, or data storage.
- Look for Common Vulnerabilities: SQL injection, cross-site scripting (XSS), buffer overflows, and insecure deserialization are common issues.
7. Principle of Least Privilege
- Limit Permissions: Ensure the library only has access to the resources it absolutely needs. Avoid granting unnecessary privileges.
- Sandboxing: Consider running the library in a sandboxed environment to isolate it from the rest of your application.