Application security (AppSec) tools have come a long way. Static code analysis, dynamic testing, software composition analysis, you name it, we’ve got a tool for it. And as these tools improved their detection capabilities, they uncovered more vulnerabilities than ever before. Sounds like progress, right? Not so fast.
The unintended consequence is an exponential rise in reported Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs). Last calendar year, 2024, showed us a record-breaking number of new vulnerabilities, more than 40,000, to illustrate. In 2024 alone, 15.32% of known CVEs were listed as “high” and “critical,” and this number represents a sharp increase over the previous year. The average organization now faces 569,354 issues, of which 6,023 are flagged as “critical.”
But here’s the catch: most of these are just noise.
False positives (FPs) are skyrocketing, security teams are drowning in alerts, and engineers are ignoring AppSec tools altogether. In trying to solve security, we’ve created a monster, one that detects everything but prioritizes nothing.
The Fatal Flaw: Detection Without Context
Modern AppSec tools operate in silos. They focus on individual points in the pipeline. Scanning code in repositories, analyzing dependencies, or testing deployments and runtime environments, but they fail to connect the dots from code to cloud.
Here’s what’s happening:
- Too Many Alerts, Not Enough Prioritization
Tools flood security teams with hundreds of thousands of issues, but they don’t tell you which ones actually matter. A low-risk vulnerability in an internal service behind multiple layers of protection is treated the same as an exploitable flaw in code connected to a public-facing API. - Detection Without Business Context
AppSec scanning tools don’t understand the actual risk to your business. A critical-severity vulnerability in an unused feature is far less critical than a medium-severity one in a revenue-generating application. But tools aren’t built to make that distinction. - Security Fatigue and Developer Backlash
Engineers are overwhelmed. When every scan results in hundreds of findings, many of which are false positives, engineers stop paying attention. Security becomes another box to check, rather than an integral part of the development process.
We’ve reached a breaking point. AppSec scanning tools, in their current form, are making security worse.
3 Ways to Escape the AppSec Death Spiral
The good news is: You can escape this mess. Here’s how:
1. Shift from Vulnerability Management to Risk Management
Not all vulnerabilities are equal. Instead of treating every CVE as a fire, focus on risk-based prioritization.
- Leverage Threat Intelligence – Use exploitability data, attack surface context, and real-world attack patterns (e.g., OSC&R) to prioritize issues that pose actual threats.
- Integrate Business Impact – A critical vulnerability in a non-production environment isn’t as crucial as a medium-severity issue in a revenue-critical application. Consider business context in your security decisions.
- Automate Decision-Making – Use tools that correlate vulnerabilities with reachability, exploitability, and real world impact. Evidence-based solutions can help reduce false positives and highlight the real threats.
2. Go Beyond Point Solutions – Connect the Dots
AppSec scanning tools are only effective when they work together. Instead of relying on isolated scans, build an integrated security pipeline spanning code to cloud.
- Adopt a Unified Security Platform – Invest in security solutions that connect code, build, cloud, and runtime capabilities into a single, contextual view.
- Enrich Findings with Cloud Security Posture Data – If a vulnerable application runs in a locked-down cloud environment with zero public exposure, the risk is lower than a similar issue in an open AWS S3 bucket.
- Correlate Security Data Across the SDLC – Link code vulnerabilities to runtime behavior, API risks, and infrastructure misconfigurations. This helps security teams focus on real threats instead of theoretical ones.
3. Empower Developers Instead of Overwhelming Them
Developers are the first line of defense in AppSec, but they won’t engage if security tools create more friction than value.
- Provide Contextual, Actionable Feedback – Instead of dumping a list of CVEs on engineers, show them why an issue matters and how to fix it efficiently.
- Translate Security Issues into Developer Language – Instead of vague CVE reports, provide clear, actionable remediation steps in a way developers understand. Use code examples, stack-specific guidance, and direct links to affected lines of code to make fixes faster and easier.
- Integrate Security into Dev Workflows – Security tools should work where developers work: in their CI/CD pipelines, Git workflows, and in their IDEs. No one wants to open another dashboard just to see another pile of unprioritized alerts.
The Future of AppSec: Security That Works for Humans
The problem with AppSec isn’t that we lack tools; it’s that we have too many tools generating too many alerts with too little context. Security must evolve from a game of “find all the vulnerabilities” to a strategy prioritizing real-world risk.
By shifting from detection to prioritization, connecting security data across the SDLC, and making AppSec developer-friendly, we can fix the mess we’ve created.
If we don’t, AppSec won’t be ineffective; it will be ignored.
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