Shifting Security Left: Why You Shouldn’t Wait to Apply Security Controls

What Does it Mean to Shift Left?

Learn how to “shift left” in terms of implementing security controls earlier in the Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC).

Shifting left means not waiting until deployment time to apply security controls post-implementation but rather during the pre-implementation stages of the SDLC.

These stages (such as the Definition, Design, or even Development phase) can allow for security requirements to be conceptualized and applied before an implementation phase.

Goals of Shift Left Security:

• Ensure that lower development environments receive security configurations; not just production
• Reduce environmental discrepancies around security, privacy, and other control factors
• Introduce security earlier in the SDLC
• Automate security efforts via code