Static Application Security Testing (SAST) Explained

What is SAST?

SAST (static application security testing) scans source code, bytecode, or binaries for security flaws without running the application.

SAST is an essential white-box testing method, meaning it doesn’t interact with the application externally but instead looks into the application source code and scans for vulnerabilities/malicious sections. Huge databases of security vulnerabilities power SAST tools, so they are optimized to find common programming mistakes that can lead to security gaps. Every security scanner that checks static assets instead of a running program can be considered a SAST tool. 

SAST is not limited to scanning lines of code, though. While some SAST tools can scan a specific programming language, others can also scan byte codes and assembly code in binaries. There are even SAST tools that scan XML files for external entity attacks. Some advanced SAST tools also analyze configuration files (e.g., XML or YAML) for issues such as insecure deserialization or XML External Entity (XXE) attacks.

Further, by allowing development and security teams to work closely together, SAST ensures code is implemented safely and needs fewer rewrites later.

Static application security testing should be part of every organization’s software development life cycle. Let’s examine SAST's ins and outs to see why.

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How does SAST work?

SAST utilities are usually CLI tools or IDE extensions that use local or remote lists of security vulnerabilities. They read source code or other software artifacts and compare them to these lists. 

With IDE integration, SAST tools can check code as soon as the developer writes it and give immediate feedback. The CLI allows for integration with version control, so scans are automatically executed before a commit or a push.

Ideally, an issue found by a SAST utility can be solved at its inception. In the worst case, it can be solved before it enters version control. Figure 1 shows how a SAST tool notifies a developer of a security issue.

Because vulnerability lists are constantly updated (and many organizations add SAST to their development process after releasing software), it’s crucial to integrate SAST into the CI/CD pipeline. Simply put, as part of the CI/CD pipeline, SAST can check existing code for security problems that have recently been identified.

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How does SAST differ from DAST?

While SAST scans static code, dynamic application security testing (DAST) is a black-box testing method that doesn’t scan the application's code but tries to run the software with known attack vectors. 

DAST can check an HTTP server by sending requests with known exploits to see if it’s vulnerable. It doesn’t read the code, so it doesn’t care about the programming language used to implement the server. DAST is usually slower than SAST, but it also finds application vulnerabilities that SAST can’t, like susceptibility to DDoS attacks, internal data exposure, or issues with third-party services. 

In short, SAST scans software assets like source code, markup, byte code, and binaries for common patterns, while DAST runs the application and tries to execute common attacks. With interactive application security testing (IAST), you can take a hybrid approach, while DAST methods are directly linked to the executed code.

Combining both SAST and DAST with runtime protection adds a layered defence in depth.

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What are the benefits and limitations of SAST?

Our examination of DAST’s capabilities might have already hinted at it, but SAST isn’t perfect. Because SAST has pros and cons, it’s vital to look closely before deciding which methods you’ll integrate.

The benefits of SAST

• Early detection: SAST catches vulnerabilities during development, when they’re cheaper and faster to fix.

• Real-time developer feedback: IDE integrations help developers learn secure coding practices on the job.

• Policy enforcement: Enforces compliance standards automatically across teams.

• Automation-friendly: Works well in CI/CD pipelines for continuous, scalable coverage.

The major benefit of SAST is early detection. 

The less time a security vulnerability spends in your code base, the less time potential attackers have to exploit it. The sooner a security problem is found, the easier it is to fix. It’s harder for a developer to fix software they wrote months or even years ago. In some cases, the engineer who wrote the code isn’t even with the company anymore. 

With SAST, developers writing insecure code get an immediate security alert while still immersed in the task at hand, drastically improving knowledge retention. Think of it as professional training and working at the same time.

SAST can also help enforce organization-wide compliance and standards, which is especially helpful for new policies that not all engineers know yet, or standards that might not seem beneficial to the implementing engineers, who might skip them to save time. With SAST’s guardrails, you get peace of mind that security and coding best practices are always followed.

Another benefit: SAST is automation-friendly. You can easily integrate it into the DevOps and CI/CD pipelines. This enables scalable and automated security testing throughout the dev lifecycle for continuous security. 

The limitations of SAST

• False positives: SAST tools often lack runtime context, flagging issues that aren't exploitable, which can frustrate devs.

• Blind to runtime issues: SAST can’t detect dynamic threats like race conditions, logic flaws, or external service abuse.

• Ongoing tuning required: SAST rules must be maintained and adjusted to reduce noise and reflect codebase changes.

The major downside of SAST is that it’s prone to false positives. 

SAST is a very eager scanning method that looks only at the code and not how it’s deployed in production. A web server for a public social media site has a different threat model than a desktop application. Depending on the sophistication level of the tool, filtering these false positives can become a chore for your engineers. If they get overwhelmed, they might turn off the tools altogether. 

Also, SAST doesn’t execute your application, so it doesn’t catch runtime vulnerabilities. It doesn’t know if your system will get ten or a million requests per minute, and it can’t differentiate between sensitive and public information. If you’re concerned about these problems, use a DAST tool instead.

Finally, adding a SAST tool requires a commitment to ongoing maintenance. You must constantly update your vulnerability lists and re-run SAST scans with the new information; otherwise, you might miss the latest security issues. The newer a vulnerability, the higher the chance that a threat actor will exploit it. On average, it takes only five days for attackers to exploit a new risk. 

Best practices for running SAST effectively

Running SAST includes rebuilding your culture for security-first mindsets and leveraging the right processes. You can successfully utilize SAST with the following actions:

• Start early with your team: Shift security left by making SAST part of your software development life cycle from the beginning of production. Catch vulnerabilities before they become more expensive later down the line.

• Automate your security: Embed your SAST tool into your CI/CD pipeline. You can trigger automatic scans with commit and pull requests and other security checks for proactive measures to catch issues before production.

• Continuously improve your rules: Customize rules to fit your code base by adjusting sensitivity, filtering out irrelevant files, and minimizing false positives to soften the burden on your team.

• Invest in prioritization: Use cloud security platforms, like Wiz, that can prioritize risks and add context. This helps you downrank low-risk findings and surface critical issues based on exposure.

Core functions and capabilities of SAST tools

An effective SAST tool should have these core functions:

• Code analyses: Scan source code without running the application so you can minimize the burden on the app and assess code quality.

• IDE integration: Get real-time feedback while developers write code.

• Automated scanning and vulnerability detection: Use automatic scans to trigger CI/CD pipelines and spot vulnerabilities like SQL injection and insecure configurations.

• Compliance enforcement: Implement your high standards based on industry regulations.

• Custom rules: Tailor checks to key frameworks or security needs.

What are the most popular open-source SAST tools?

For teams testing SAST or operating in OSS-heavy environments, these free SAST tools offer strong coverage across common stacks.

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While open-source tools are valuable, enterprise-grade SAST tools are effective, particularly for integration with cloud-native environments.

What are the most important features of a SAST tool?

As you pick the right SAST tool, look for key capabilities:

• Multi-language support: Your SAST tool should function across all your programming languages.

• Minimal false positives: Your tools should help automate your processes, not add more work for your team. Ensure your SAST scanning tool reduces false positives so your developers can shift energy to more sensitive security cases.

• Scalability and seamless integrations: Your team should make sure your tools can handle a large codebase and growing infrastructure. Also, choose a tool that can work with your IDEs, CI/CD systems, and other key cloud environment tools.

• Detailed, contextual reporting: Your tool should deliver clear, contextual, and prioritized insights for fixing vulnerabilities.

The Wiz - Checkmarx SAST integration

Through the Checkmarx and Wiz partnership, its teams have created an integration that enhances application security by combining Checkmarx's expertise in application security with Wiz's Cloud Native Application Protection Platform (CNAPP). This integration aims to provide a comprehensive approach to security from code development to cloud deployment and runtime.

Checkmarx’s SAST results can find issues early in the development process, including while the code is written. Integrating Wiz’s runtime data and cloud asset inventory allows you to correlate the results with the deployed infrastructure, which saves time locating and remediating vulnerabilities. 

Between Checkmarx’s scanning information and Wiz’s runtime data, you know if critical vulnerabilities are exposed in your system. This reduces false positives and non-critical alerts by up to 90%, improving remediation prioritization. With Wiz and Checkmarx, all these features are visible in one centralized place—no switching between tools is necessary.

Key features of the integration

• Code to cloud security: The integration allows for a seamless security approach from the first line of code to deployment and runtime in the cloud. This "code to cloud and back" vision gives you a greater security posture across your entire software development lifecycle (SDLC).

• Enhanced vulnerability detection and prioritization: By correlating Checkmarx SAST scan results with Wiz's cloud security insights, the integration helps you identify, prioritize, and address the most significant risks to critical assets. This correlation provides unified and actionable security visibility, improving the detection and mitigation of vulnerabilities across your entire software lifecycle.

• Runtime context for better risk assessment: The integration adds runtime context to vulnerability findings, allowing teams to understand if vulnerabilities are exposed to the internet, which increases the risk of exploitation. This additional context helps modify risk levels and prioritize vulnerabilities more effectively.

Benefits of the integration

• Improved prioritization: The combined insights from Checkmarx and Wiz allow security and development teams to focus on the most critical vulnerabilities first, improving productivity and efficiency.

• Comprehensive security posture: The integration provides a holistic view of security risks, spanning from application code to cloud infrastructure. This "shift left, shield right" strategy ensures a comprehensive security approach throughout the development and deployment process.

• Streamlined workflows: The integration streamlines vulnerability detection and mitigation processes by bringing together application security findings and cloud security scan data.

• Actionable insights: Correlating data from both platforms provides more actionable insights, enabling teams to address vulnerabilities more effectively at both the development stage and in production environments.

Learn more about code security with Wiz’s free State of Code Security in 2025. 

If you want to improve your SAST scanning and security, try Wiz. The platform offers a context-aware vulnerability assessment that considers both static code analysis and the runtime cloud environment. Prioritize and validate vulnerabilities identified through SAST today.