Product Overview of Semmle (GitHub Security Lab)
Introduction
Semmle, now integrated into GitHub as the GitHub Security Lab, is a revolutionary platform designed to enhance the security and integrity of software code. Acquired by GitHub in September 2019, Semmle’s technology has been instrumental in identifying and mitigating security vulnerabilities in open-source and proprietary software.
Key Features and Functionality
Semantic Code Analysis
Semmle’s core technology is its semantic code analysis engine, which treats code as data rather than text. This approach allows for deep, relational queries on codebases, similar to how databases are queried. The engine uses a declarative, object-oriented query language called Semmle QL (QL), which enables developers to write queries that identify specific code patterns, vulnerabilities, and their variants across large codebases.
CodeQL and Variant Analysis
CodeQL, the query language developed by Semmle, is a powerful tool for identifying security vulnerabilities. It performs variant analysis, which involves finding all variations of a known vulnerability within a codebase. This capability allows security researchers to discover and eliminate hundreds of vulnerabilities with a single query, making it highly efficient for large-scale code audits.
Integration with GitHub
Semmle’s technology is now deeply integrated with GitHub’s ecosystem. The GitHub Security Lab uses CodeQL as a foundation for code scanning and as a core pillar of GitHub Advanced Security (GHAS). This integration enables developers to run CodeQL queries directly within their GitHub workflows, including during pull requests, to detect and fix security issues before they are merged into the main codebase.
GitHub Advisory Database
The GitHub Security Lab also maintains the GitHub Advisory Database, a public database of security advisories created on GitHub. This database provides developers with accurate and up-to-date information about known security issues in their open-source dependencies.
Multi-Language Support
Semmle QL supports a wide range of programming languages, including C, C , C#, COBOL, Java, JavaScript, TypeScript, and Python, with support for Go in development. This broad support makes it a versatile tool for diverse development environments.
Community and Reusability
One of the significant advantages of Semmle QL is its ability to share and reuse queries. Developers can leverage a large library of open-source queries, execute them as part of their automatic CI/CD pipelines, and contribute new queries to the community. This collaborative approach enhances the collective security posture of the software ecosystem.
Continuous Integration and Deployment (CI/CD)
Semmle’s technology is designed to be part of continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD) workflows. It integrates seamlessly with GitHub Actions, allowing developers to automate code analysis and vulnerability detection as part of their regular development processes.
Impact and Usage
Semmle’s solutions have been widely adopted by top technology and financial services companies, including Google, Microsoft, NASA, and Uber. The platform has been instrumental in identifying thousands of vulnerabilities, including over 100 CVEs in open-source projects. The GitHub Security Lab has recently disclosed over 500 CVEs in open-source projects, highlighting the significant impact of Semmle’s technology on software security.
In summary, Semmle, as part of the GitHub Security Lab, offers a powerful set of tools and features that revolutionize the way security vulnerabilities are identified and mitigated in software code. Its semantic code analysis, variant analysis capabilities, and integration with GitHub make it an indispensable resource for ensuring the security and integrity of software projects.