Developers to be warned of vulnerabilities in their projects

Jul 17, 2018 11:09 GMT  ·  By

GitHub is extending a system that scans coding languages for security vulnerabilities with the addition of Python. The feature debuted last year with Ruby and JavaScript support.

With this update, GitHub, which is currently in the process of being acquired by Microsoft for $7.5 billion, the world’s largest code repository platform can look into Python code published by developers and issue notifications for known security vulnerabilities.

“We’re pleased to announce that we’ve shipped Python support. As of this week, Python users can now access the dependency graph and receive security alerts whenever their repositories depend on packages with known security vulnerabilities,” GitHub announced today.

This new feature will be introduced gradually, and at this point, only a few recent vulnerabilities are supported, though Microsoft says that more known issues would be added over the coming weeks.

“Going forward, we will continue to monitor the NVD feed and other sources, and will send alerts on any newly disclosed vulnerabilities in Python packages,” GitHub announces.

Admins getting security alerts by default

Developers can access the dependency graph to receive security alerts if their repositories depend on packages that GitHub has labeled as vulnerable.

“Public repositories will automatically have your dependency graph and security alerts enabled. For private repositories, you’ll need to opt in to security alerts in your repository settings or by allow access in the dependency graph section of your repository’s “Insights” tab,” GitHub says.

Additionally, this feature can be configured to issue security alerts to teams and individuals from the Alerts tab in each repository settings menu.

According to official data, this vulnerability alert system already discovered four million vulnerabilities in 500,000 Ruby and JavaScript repositories since its debut last year, and GitHub expects the number to grow as more languages are being added.