Contrast Security Observability Platform

Contrast, an application security firm serving clients such as Liberty Mutual Insurance, NTT Data, AXA, and Bandwidth, has unveiled its new security observability platform. This offering provides developers with a centralized interface for managing application security throughout the development process, alongside real-time analytics, reporting capabilities, and tools to address identified issues.

According to Contrast CEO and chairman Alan Naumann, “As the volume of code increases, so does the potential risk to a business if that code isn’t adequately protected.” He further stated that the company’s focus is on safeguarding the code created by businesses to support both automation initiatives and digital transformation efforts.

In recent years, Contrast, having secured $65 million in Series D funding last year, has introduced a series of security solutions addressing diverse needs, ranging from automated penetration testing to cloud application security and DevOps. This latest platform is designed to integrate and unify these existing tools.

The company contends that the rise of DevOps practices is a key driver for a platform of this nature, as developers are now deploying code into production environments at an unprecedented rate – and are frequently responsible for ensuring its security.

Image Credits: Contrast

Naumann explains that traditional security approaches have typically concentrated on the code itself and network traffic analysis.

“We believe the principles of observability, proven effective in IT infrastructure, are equally applicable at the application level,” he said. “Specifically, we instrument the code, embedding security sensors during development to identify vulnerabilities and monitor running code. […] We maintain that the most intricate systems benefit from instrumentation – whether they are airplanes, spacecraft, or IT infrastructure – and we believe this holds true for code as well. Our innovation lies in applying instrumentation to code and monitoring for security weaknesses.”

This new platform consolidates data from Contrast’s current offerings into a unified dashboard. Throughout the application lifecycle, Contrast monitors the code and also performs vulnerability scans whenever developers commit code changes through the CI/CD pipeline, integrating with popular tools like Jenkins. The service also identifies vulnerabilities within open-source libraries. After deployment, the platform continuously monitors data flowing through the application’s APIs and connected systems, proactively searching for potential security concerns.

The platform currently provides support for major cloud platforms, including AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud, as well as popular programming languages and frameworks such as Java, Python, .NET, and Ruby.

Image Credits: Contrast