dependency-scanning – Security skill for AI agents

Dependency Scanning

Identify vulnerabilities in third-party dependencies and libraries.

When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when:

• Managing third-party dependencies
• Implementing software composition analysis
• Meeting compliance requirements
• Securing the software supply chain
• Automating vulnerability detection

Scan and exception boundaries

Inventory every relevant manifest/lockfile, including nested projects; a clean root scan does not cover them. Review tools at fixed versions and scan with lifecycle scripts disabled where supported. Some scanners upload dependency metadata or source, so confirm permitted data/account scope. fix, --force, ignores and suppressions mutate dependencies or policy: review diffs and test before adopting them. Historical suppression IDs/dates are examples, never reusable approval; bind each real exception to evidence, owner and expiry. A missing vulnerable-function call is not automatically a false positive or a license exemption.

Prerequisites

• Package manifest files (package.json, requirements.txt, etc.)
• CI/CD pipeline access
• Dependency scanning tool

Tool Comparison

| Tool | Type | Languages | Best For |

|------|------|-----------|----------|

| Snyk | Commercial/Free | Many | Comprehensive SCA |

| Dependabot | Free (GitHub) | Many | Automated PRs |

| OWASP Dep-Check | OSS | Many | Free scanning |

| npm audit | Built-in | Node.js | Quick checks |

| pip-audit | OSS | Python | Python projects |

| Trivy | OSS | Many | Container deps |

Snyk

CLI Usage

# Install
npm install -g snyk

# Authenticate
snyk auth

# Test project
snyk test

# Monitor project (track over time)
snyk monitor

# Test specific manifest
snyk test --file=package.json
snyk test --file=requirements.txt

# Output formats
snyk test --json > snyk-results.json
snyk test --sarif > snyk-results.sarif

# Fix vulnerabilities
snyk fix

# Ignore vulnerability
snyk ignore --id=SNYK-JS-LODASH-567746 --expiry=2024-12-31 --reason="No exploit path"

CI Integration

NON-EXECUTABLE CI DESIGN: before adoption, use least-privilege jobs, pin every action to a reviewed full SHA, and provision verified fixed-version tools in a digest-pinned runner image. Never expose credentials during tool provisioning.
# .github/workflows/snyk.yml
name: Snyk Security

on:
  push:
    branches: [main]
  pull_request:

jobs:
  snyk:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4

      - name: Run Snyk to check for vulnerabilities
        step: Run the preinstalled reviewed Snyk binary
        env:
          SNYK_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.SNYK_TOKEN }}
        with:
          args: --severity-threshold=high

      - name: Upload results to GitHub
        uses: github/codeql-action/upload-sarif@v3
        with:
          sarif_file: snyk.sarif

Policy File

# .snyk
version: v1.25.0
ignore:
  SNYK-JS-LODASH-567746:
    - '*':
        reason: No user input reaches this function
        expires: 2024-12-31
        created: 2024-01-15

  'snyk:lic:npm:gpl-3.0':
    - '*':
        reason: Internal use only
        
patch: {}

GitHub Dependabot

Configuration

# .github/dependabot.yml
version: 2
updates:
  # JavaScript/Node.js
  - package-ecosystem: "npm"
    directory: "/"
    schedule:
      interval: "weekly"
      day: "monday"
    open-pull-requests-limit: 10
    reviewers:
      - "security-team"
    labels:
      - "dependencies"
      - "security"
    ignore:
      - dependency-name: "aws-sdk"
        update-types: ["version-update:semver-major"]
    groups:
      development-dependencies:
        dependency-type: "development"
        update-types:
          - "minor"
          - "patch"

  # Python
  - package-ecosystem: "pip"
    directory: "/"
    schedule:
      interval: "daily"
    
  # Docker
  - package-ecosystem: "docker"
    directory: "/"
    schedule:
      interval: "weekly"
    
  # GitHub Actions
  - package-ecosystem: "github-actions"
    directory: "/"
    schedule:
      interval: "weekly"

Security Alerts

# Automated security updates
# Enable in repository Settings > Security > Dependabot

# Dependabot will automatically:
# - Create PRs for vulnerable dependencies
# - Update to patched versions
# - Provide CVE details in PR description

OWASP Dependency-Check

Installation

# Download
wget https://github.com/jeremylong/DependencyCheck/releases/download/v9.0.0/dependency-check-9.0.0-release.zip
unzip dependency-check-9.0.0-release.zip

# Or via Homebrew
brew install dependency-check

Usage

# Scan project
dependency-check --project "MyProject" \
  --scan /path/to/project \
  --out /path/to/reports \
  --format HTML \
  --format JSON

# With specific analyzers
dependency-check --project "MyProject" \
  --scan . \
  --enableExperimental \
  --disableRetireJS

# CI configuration
dependency-check --project "MyProject" \
  --scan . \
  --format JSON \
  --failOnCVSS 7 \
  --suppression suppression.xml

Suppression File

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<!-- suppression.xml -->
<suppressions xmlns="https://jeremylong.github.io/DependencyCheck/dependency-suppression.1.3.xsd">
  <suppress>
    <notes>False positive - not using vulnerable function</notes>
    <packageUrl regex="true">^pkg:npm/lodash@.*$</packageUrl>
    <cve>CVE-2021-23337</cve>
  </suppress>
  
  <suppress until="2024-12-31">
    <notes>Risk accepted - mitigated by WAF</notes>
    <cpe>cpe:/a:apache:struts:2.5.0</cpe>
    <vulnerabilityName>CVE-2023-12345</vulnerabilityName>
  </suppress>
</suppressions>

Maven Integration

<!-- pom.xml -->
<plugin>
  <groupId>org.owasp</groupId>
  <artifactId>dependency-check-maven</artifactId>
  <version>9.0.0</version>
  <configuration>
    <failBuildOnCVSS>7</failBuildOnCVSS>
    <suppressionFiles>
      <suppressionFile>suppression.xml</suppressionFile>
    </suppressionFiles>
  </configuration>
  <executions>
    <execution>
      <goals>
        <goal>check</goal>
      </goals>
    </execution>
  </executions>
</plugin>

Language-Specific Tools

Node.js (npm audit)

# Run audit
npm audit

# JSON output
npm audit --json

# Fix automatically
npm audit fix

# Fix with breaking changes
npm audit fix --force

# Production only
npm audit --production

Python (pip-audit)

# Install
pip install pip-audit

# Scan installed packages
pip-audit

# Scan requirements file
pip-audit -r requirements.txt

# Output formats
pip-audit --format json
pip-audit --format cyclonedx-json

# Fix vulnerabilities
pip-audit --fix

Go (govulncheck)

# Install
go install golang.org/x/vuln/cmd/govulncheck@latest

# Scan project
govulncheck ./...

# JSON output
govulncheck -json ./...

Ruby (bundler-audit)

# Install
gem install bundler-audit

# Update database
bundle-audit update

# Run audit
bundle-audit check

# Output format
bundle-audit check --format json

SBOM Generation

CycloneDX

# Node.js
npx @cyclonedx/cyclonedx-npm --output-file sbom.json

# Python
pip install cyclonedx-bom
cyclonedx-py -o sbom.json

# Go
go install github.com/CycloneDX/cyclonedx-gomod/cmd/cyclonedx-gomod@latest
cyclonedx-gomod mod -json > sbom.json

Syft

# Install
# Tool prerequisite: use a verified preinstalled binary; no network installer runs here.

# Generate SBOM
syft dir:/path/to/project -o cyclonedx-json > sbom.json
syft dir:/path/to/project -o spdx-json > sbom-spdx.json

# From container
syft myimage:latest -o cyclonedx-json > sbom.json

CI/CD Pipeline

NON-EXECUTABLE CI DESIGN: before adoption, use least-privilege jobs, pin every action to a reviewed full SHA, and provision verified fixed-version tools in a digest-pinned runner image. Never expose credentials during tool provisioning.
# Comprehensive dependency scanning
name: Dependency Security

on:
  push:
    branches: [main]
  pull_request:
  schedule:
    - cron: '0 8 * * *'

jobs:
  scan:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4

      - name: npm audit
        run: npm audit --audit-level=high

      - name: Snyk scan
        step: Run the preinstalled reviewed Snyk binary
        env:
          SNYK_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.SNYK_TOKEN }}
        with:
          args: --severity-threshold=high
          
      - name: Generate SBOM
        run: npx @cyclonedx/cyclonedx-npm --output-file sbom.json

      - name: Upload SBOM
        uses: actions/upload-artifact@v4
        with:
          name: sbom
          path: sbom.json

Common Issues

Issue: Too Many Alerts

Problem: Overwhelmed by vulnerability count

Solution: Prioritize by exploitability, filter by severity

Issue: No Fix Available

Problem: Vulnerable dependency has no patch

Solution: Consider alternatives, implement compensating controls

Issue: Breaking Updates

Problem: Security fix breaks functio

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