GitHub opens Copilot Chat to all developers

GitHub has announced that Copilot Chat is now available to all developers, ushering in a new era of AI-powered software development.

Copilot Chat was launched for ‘Business’ users in July. The AI assistant is capable of assisting developers in their preferred natural language and promises to reduce repetitive tasks.

Developers can use the assistant to explore new languages or frameworks, troubleshoot bugs, and/or seek answers to coding questions, all while remaining...

21 September 2023 | Artificial Intelligence

Sonatype reveals DevOps and SecOps leaders’ views on generative AI

While the tech community remains divided on the potential of generative AI tools, there's a consensus that their impact on the industry is comparable to the adoption of cloud technology.

Software engineers are harnessing generative AI to explore libraries, create new code, and enhance their development process, while application security professionals employ it for code analysis and security testing.

A recent survey conducted by Sonatype in the US sheds light on how...

12 September 2023 | Artificial Intelligence

Salt launches STEP program to enhance API security for enterprises

Salt Security has launched an initiative to help enterprises significantly reduce risk across their API ecosystem.

The STEP (Salt Technical Ecosystem Partner) program encompasses the integration of AI-driven API security insights into existing workflows and tools within organisations. This integration empowers joint customers to bolster their security posture using the Salt Security API Protection Platform.

Salt has introduced STEP’s inaugural partners, focusing on API...

23 August 2023 | API

Mathew Payne, GitHub: Protecting code while nurturing user experience

Developer caught up with Mathew Payne, Principal Field Security Specialist at GitHub, to discuss the platform’s security strategies and how they aim to strike a balance between robustness and a seamless user experience.

At the heart of GitHub's security philosophy lies a commitment to safeguarding user code. Payne emphasised that a major focus is on securing the code created by both users and developers.

“The first thing that we focus on at GitHub is the security...

18 August 2023 | Development Tools

Malicious PyPI package discovered in ongoing ‘PaperPin’ campaign

In a recent analysis conducted by Sonatype, a malicious Python Package Index (PyPI) package named 'VMConnect' was discovered masquerading as the legitimate VMware vSphere connector module 'vConnector'.

The counterfeit package was found to contain sinister code designed to compromise users' systems. Further investigation revealed an ongoing campaign involving additional packages like "ethter" and "quantiumbase," all sharing the same structure and payload.

The 'VMConnect'...

4 August 2023 | Hacking & Security

Checkmarx uncovers supply chain attacks targeting banking

Checkmarx has uncovered a new and sophisticated cyber threat targeting the banking sector.

The security testing firm's research team detected two distinct open-source software supply chain attacks targeting financial institutions. These attacks, which involved advanced techniques and deceptive tactics, have raised alarm bells among cybersecurity experts.

Attack one: NPM

The first attack occurred on April 5th and 7th when a threat actor exploited the NPM platform,...

21 July 2023 | Hacking & Security

GitHub introduces passwordless authentication

GitHub is introducing passwordless authentication to enhance account security and provide a more seamless user experience.

Passkeys are touted as offering a secure and easy-to-use method of protecting user accounts, with the aim of eliminating password-based breaches altogether. Unlike conventional security measures, passkeys offer improved security by combining two-factor authentication (2FA) with enhanced user verification.

Passkeys require something the user is or...

14 July 2023 | Development Tools

Sonatype uncovers further malicious PyPI and npm packages

Sonatype continues to uncover a significant number of malicious packages within the PyPI and npm software registries.

Among the flagged packages were several Python packages published on PyPI, masquerading as legitimate libraries named after the popular npm "colors" library.

The malicious packages, including names such as "broke-rcl," "brokescolors," and "trexcolors," exclusively targeted the Windows operating system. Once installed, these packages would initiate the...

23 June 2023 | Developer

AppSec teams stuck in catch-up cycle due to massive cloud-native enablement gap

A security camera surrounded by clouds.

Backslash Security, a cloud-native application security solution for enterprise AppSec teams, has released a new research study, Breaking the Catch-up Cycle: The New Cloud-Native AppSec Paradigm Survey Report, exploring how the state of application security has evolved given the rise of cloud-native application development.

The study examines the practices, tools, and needs of CISOs, AppSec managers, and AppSec engineers at enterprise organizations of 1,000 or more employees...

26 May 2023 | Developer

PyPI suspends new projects and users due to malicious activity

The PyPI (Python Package Index) team has temporarily suspended new projects and users on their platform due to malicious activity.

This surge in malicious activity aligns with a larger trend observed across several open-source registries in recent months. Notably, incidents such as the flood of malicious packages on the NPM JavaScript package manager and a similar attack on the Nuget package manager last year, involving over 140,000 malicious packages, have highlighted the...

22 May 2023 | Hacking & Security