A Quick Tour to Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST)

When your web app is up and running, you finally sit back and relax for a while after pouring ample effort to make it reach its target audience. But what if you and your team come across some vulnerabilities that are still present in the application? The anxiety is unimaginable, right?

But that’s when dynamic application security testing (DAST) comes into play. Are you eager to know what is DAST and how it helps you detect such vulnerabilities? Please read this blog, which provides a simplified explanation of DAST and its usability.

What is Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST)?

DAST is a security approach that validates the security of an application in its workable condition. DAST imitates attacks on a live application to check for vulnerabilities that are likely to be exploited by actual attacks. With DAST, businesses can uncover and fix the detected security flaws in real-time by helping with insights into potential risks and areas of improvement.

How Does DAST Work?

Dynamic application security testing works actively to monitor a running application to detect vulnerabilities. It sends different inputs and requests to the application’s interfaces, like web forms and APIs, and observes if there are any security flaws in its response. A DAST tool also ensures how the application handles multiple requests and inputs and detects issues like security misconfiguration, validation errors, or any other possible security flaws.

What Problems DAST Solves?

DAST addresses several potential security problems; let’s check out what kind of problems DAST primarily helps you solve:

1. Identifies Runtime Vulnerabilities

DAST captures security flaws that only appear when the application is operational, such as session management weaknesses or authentication bypasses.

2. Detects Configuration Issues

DAST finds misconfigurations and vulnerabilities in the application’s runtime environment.

3. Checks for Possible Security Flaws

DAST imitates real-world attacks to check how the application responds to such threats in an operational capacity.

4. Identifies Input Validation Errors

Checks for vulnerabilities in how the application processes and validates user inputs.

5. Examines Security of Web Interfaces

Validates the security of APIs and web interfaces to ensure that they manage requests aptly.

Advantages of DAST

Let’s take a look at the key advantages that dynamic application security testing offers.

• Real-time vulnerability detection
• No access to source code is required
• In-depth testing
• Improves risk management
• Supports continuous integration
• Identifies configuration issues
• Helps compliance

Disadvantages of DAST

Let’s take a look at some of the drawbacks of dynamic application security testing offers.

• Limited scope
• False positives and negatives
• Performance impact
• Complex configuration
• Lesser effective for non-web applications

How to Implement DAST?

Proper implementation of DAST is significant to ensure it works effectively in detecting potential vulnerabilities in applications. Let’s check out how to implement DAST.

1. Select a DAST Tool

Choose an ideal DAST tool considering factors like application type, integration capabilities, and budget.

2. Define Testing Scope

Determine what type of application or application’s parts need to be assessed. Consider all the relevant interfaces, APIs, and endpoints.

3. Configure the Tool

Set up the DAST tool by configuring it to interact with your application. Factor in specific URLs, authentication details, and other parameters for conducting effective testing.

4. Perform a Baseline Scan

Perform a minor scan to set a baseline for your application’s security posture. This gives you an idea of detecting existing vulnerabilities and provides a reference point for future tests.

5. Integrate with CI/CD Pipeline

Integrate DAST into your continuous integration/continuous deployment (CI/CD) pipeline to automate regular security scans as part of your development workflow.

Summing Up

Dynamic application security testing is an ideal concept for testing an application’s vulnerabilities when it’s operational. However, there was a lot of confusion about its implementation and workability. We hope this guide has helped you learn its implementation process and other details that will make it easier for you to optimize DAST to ensure robust security for your apps.