A. Basics
A1What does this service cover?
The security of the software you build or run: web and mobile apps, APIs and GraphQL, source code, open-source components, CI/CD pipelines and cloud-native services, plus threat modelling and a review of how securely your teams build software.
A2How is it different from VAPT?
VAPT tests systems from the outside, across networks, cloud and applications. This service goes deeper into how software is engineered: code, components, pipelines, design and developer practice. The two work well together.
A3What is DevSecOps?
Building security into everyday software delivery: security requirements and threat models at design, automated checks in the pipeline, reviewed code, controlled releases and tracked fixes, instead of a single test just before go-live.
A4We already do a yearly penetration test. Why more?
A yearly test sees one moment. If you release every week, most of your code has never been tested. Release-linked testing, pipeline gates and code review close that gap and stop the same issues coming back.
A5What is the difference between SAST, DAST and SCA?
SAST reads source code for insecure patterns. DAST tests the running application from outside. SCA checks the open-source components you use for known flaws and risky packages. Each finds different issues.
A6What is an SBOM, and why are customers asking for one?
A software bill of materials lists the components inside your software and their versions. Regulators and buyers ask for SBOMs so they can check exposure quickly when a component flaw is announced. CERT-In has published guidelines on them.
A7Can testing guarantee we will not be breached?
No test can guarantee that. Testing and better engineering practice reduce risk by finding and preventing the flaws attackers would most likely use, and give you evidence of where you stand.
A8Who should own application security?
Usually the CTO or engineering head together with the CISO, with product owners and DevOps involved. Leadership should see the summary and track how fast critical and high findings are fixed.
B. Scope and planning
B1What can be included in scope?
Web and mobile applications, REST, SOAP and GraphQL APIs, microservices, source code, open-source dependencies, CI/CD pipelines and repositories, cloud-native services, AI features, threat models and a DevSecOps maturity review.
B2How do we decide what to cover first?
Start with what handles money, identity or personal data, what is exposed to customers or partners, and what has changed most. The scoping call ranks these and matches them to services.
B3Should testing run in production or staging?
Application and API testing usually runs in a staging environment that truly mirrors production. Production is used only for agreed, non-intrusive checks, inside approved windows.
B4Do you need credentials and API documentation?
Yes, for depth. Test accounts for each role and API documentation or collections let testers reach the flows where serious flaws hide. External-only testing is possible but shows less.
B5Do you need our source code?
Only for code review, white-box testing or SAST review. Access can be through your repository, a copy or a guided screen-share, whichever your policy allows.
B6Can you test APIs that only our mobile app uses?
Yes. Mobile backends are often the least tested APIs, because teams assume only the app will call them. Attackers do not.
B7How long does an engagement take?
It depends on the number of applications, APIs, repositories and pipelines, access readiness and review cycles. An API Quick Check is much shorter than a maturity programme. The schedule is agreed in the proposal.
B8Which engagement model is right for us?
API Quick Check for a focused API review, AppSec Professional for web, mobile and API testing with retest, DevSecOps Maturity to fix how software is built, and the Secure SDLC Retainer for ongoing support. Pricing is based on scope.
C. Code, pipelines and supply chain
C1How do you handle our source code?
Code access is limited to named reviewers and to what the engagement needs. Codec Networks is certified to ISO/IEC 27001:2022, and evidence is summarised rather than copied wherever possible.
C2Will you just run tools on our code?
No. Tools give coverage, but reviewers read the critical paths, such as login, authorisation, payments and KYC, and validate tool results so your developers fix real issues first.
C3What does a CI/CD security review look at?
Repository access and branch protection, pipeline permissions and runners, third-party steps, secrets in variables and logs, artifact integrity, deployment approvals and the audit trail.
C4Can you check our exposure after a supply-chain incident?
Yes. When incidents like the 2025 npm worm or the tampered GitHub Action are announced, composition analysis and pipeline review show quickly whether you were affected and what to rotate.
C5Do you produce SBOMs?
Codec Networks helps you generate and check SBOMs for your releases, in line with CERT-In's BOM guidelines, and builds SBOM generation into your pipeline where you want it.
C6What happens to secrets you find?
They are reported through a secure channel straight away, so you can rotate them. Reports reference where a secret was found, not the secret itself.
C7Is AI-generated code reviewed differently?
It is reviewed to the same standard, with extra attention to secrets, dependencies and authorisation, where AI-assisted code often goes wrong. GitGuardian's 2026 data shows AI services driving a sharp rise in leaked secrets.
C8Can you test our AI and LLM features?
Yes, as part of application testing: prompt injection, data leakage, unsafe tool use and authorisation around AI features, using the OWASP Top 10 for LLM Applications as a reference.
D. Reports, fixes and retesting
D1What reports will we receive?
Depending on the services: an application risk report, an API vulnerability report, a code review report, a DevSecOps maturity report, a CI/CD hardening checklist, secure coding guidance, a remediation dashboard and a retest report.
D2How are findings rated?
On a five-level scale from Critical to Informational. Each rating starts from the CVSS base score and is adjusted for exploitability, asset criticality and business impact.
D3Will our developers be able to reproduce and fix the findings?
Yes. Each finding includes affected endpoints or code locations, reproduction steps, evidence and fix guidance for your languages and frameworks.
D4Do you help us fix the issues?
Yes. Walk-throughs explain each finding and fix, and secure coding sessions address recurring patterns. Implementing the fixes stays with your teams, which keeps the retest independent.
D5What is a retest?
A focused check that each fixed finding is really closed. The retest report marks every item as fixed, partly fixed or still open, and it is what customers and auditors usually ask for.
D6What if we cannot fix something straight away?
The business owner can formally accept or defer the risk. A risk-acceptance note records the justification, the residual risk and the owner's approval.
D7Can we share the results with customers?
Reports are confidential. Many clients share a summary or a letter confirming testing and closure with enterprise customers, and keep technical detail internal.
D8How do we show improvement over time?
Track repeat findings, remediation times and maturity level on the dashboard. Fewer repeats and faster closure are the clearest signs that security is built in.
E. Compliance and working with us
E1Is Codec Networks CERT-In empanelled?
Yes. Codec Networks is empanelled by CERT-In for information security auditing services, and with NICSI for application audit and compliance services in the start-up category.
E2Does this help with RBI, SEBI or IRDAI expectations?
It provides technical evidence for application, API, mobile and software supply-chain expectations in instruments such as RBI's 2026 Directions and SEBI's CSCRF. Compliance depends on your full set of obligations; confirm against the official texts.
E3How does it support PCI DSS?
PCI DSS v4.0.1 Requirement 6 covers secure development of custom software and protection of public-facing web applications, including payment-page script controls. Codec Networks' testing and code review map to those requirements.
E4Does it help with ISO 27001 and SOC 2?
Yes. Results support ISO/IEC 27001:2022 secure development controls (Annex A 8.25 to 8.29) and SOC 2 criteria on change management, vulnerability management and logical access.
E5How does it relate to the DPDP Act?
The DPDP Act 2023 requires reasonable security safeguards for personal data. Applications and APIs that handle personal data are where those safeguards are tested most directly.
E6We sell software into Europe. Does the Cyber Resilience Act matter?
It may. The EU Cyber Resilience Act brings secure-by-design and vulnerability handling duties for products with digital elements, with reporting from September 2026 and full application from December 2027.
E7Can the work be done remotely?
Most of it, yes. Application, API, code and pipeline work is remote-first through secure access; threat modelling and maturity workshops can be run on site if you prefer.
E8How do we get started?
Book a scoping call. We agree the applications, APIs, repositories and pipelines to cover, propose an engagement model, sign the rules of engagement and start on the agreed date.