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At the Black Hat USA 2022 conference, CREST today shared a quality assurance verification standard to improve application security testing. The standard is based on the open source framework defined by the Open Web Application Security Project (OWASP).
Tom Brennan, executive director for Americas at CREST, said the OWASP Verification Standard (OVS) measures an organization’s ability to execute and deliver assessments related to Level 1 and Level 2 of the OWASP Application Security Verification Standard (ASVS) and OWASP Mobile Application Security Verification Standard (MASVS).
The goal is to provide a consistent methodology for accrediting companies that provide application security testing services, said Brennan. Ultimately, organizations of all sizes will then be able to require application software providers to pass an OWASP accreditation test rather than testing the security of every application they use, he noted.
Organizations need to be accredited through CREST Penetration Testing to apply for the OVS program, which requires companies to demonstrate that they can meet the program requirements and execute and deliver Level 1 and Level 2 ASVS and MASVS services. Level 1 determines whether or not applications store or handle sensitive data; that determination then defines whether or not they need the more rigorous controls of Level 2 or 3. Level 1 controls can be checked either automatically using tools or manually without access to source code. Level 2 ensures that security controls are in place, effective and used within the application. In addition, all organizations will need to ensure that their teams have completed CREST’s Skilled Person Register and have each signed the CREST code of conduct.
CREST is a nonprofit organization that was originally known as the Council of Registered Ethical Security Testers. CREST works with governments, regulators and multinational organizations to improve application security using CREST OVS Mobile and CREST OVS Apps accredited services. It’s becoming more common for organizations to require OVS to better ensure application security in much the same way they require compliance with frameworks such as the System and Organization Controls (SOC) framework, said Brennan.
OWASP is administered by a separate nonprofit foundation that works to improve the security of software by sponsoring community-led open-source software projects and training application developers. By aligning with OWASP, CREST creates a verification standard to provide a more structured approach to implementing ASVS and MASVS, noted Brennan.
OVS, of course, is arriving at a time when there is now a much greater focus on software supply chain security in the wake of a series of high-profile breaches. It is apparent cybercriminals have become more adept at discovering and exploiting a wide range of known software vulnerabilities. The Biden administration has even gone so far as to issue an executive order requiring federal agencies to review the security of their software supply chains.
It may be a while before application testing using OVS becomes routine, but as more organizations embrace DevSecOps best practices to secure their software supply chain it’s clear there is a greater need for application security testing standards. Especially those that organizations can extend versus reinventing the wheel.
