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Key takeaways

• Embedding security throughout the SDLC is essential, yet many teams still treat DAST as a late-stage check, leaving earlier phases unprotected.
• With the right timing, automation, and validation, DAST can be applied proactively to uncover exploitable vulnerabilities before production.
• By simulating real-world attacks, DAST provides actionable insights that help developers fix issues when they are easiest and cheapest to remediate.
• A DAST-first approach turns security into a built-in part of development workflows instead of a last-minute barrier.

Why DAST belongs in the SDLC

Security is often mistakenly viewed as a final hurdle before deployment – a last-mile problem to be handled by security teams at the very end. But this reactive approach introduces delays, missed issues, and rushed fixes that jeopardize both timelines and trust.

To build secure software at scale, security must be embedded from the start. And that’s where DAST shines.

Unlike static analysis tools (SAST) or software composition analysis (SCA), DAST interacts with a live, running version of your application. It simulates real attacks such as cross-site scripting (XSS), SQL injection, and authentication bypasses to expose issues that malicious users could exploit in production.

This makes DAST particularly well-suited for testing runtime behavior, business logic, and dynamic workflows as they evolve throughout the development lifecycle. When embedded at multiple SDLC stages, DAST helps teams catch critical vulnerabilities early, when they’re easier and cheaper to fix.

Key SDLC phases and where DAST fits

Planning and design

While DAST doesn’t actively scan during the planning phase, this is when security groundwork is laid. Architecture decisions, risk assessments, and design discussions should include a DAST strategy: what to scan, when to scan, and how scans will be triggered.

By thinking about DAST early, teams can avoid late-stage integration friction and ensure that security coverage aligns with product requirements and delivery timelines.

Development

As code takes shape, early DAST scans can be run against development or staging builds. These pre-production environments offer a great opportunity to catch issues like misconfigurations, insecure default settings, and flawed business logic before they become deeply embedded in the codebase.

For example, scanning a staging instance after basic routes and user authentication have been implemented may uncover issues with session handling or exposed endpoints. This feedback can then be delivered to developers quickly, while the context is fresh and changes are easy to implement.

Build and integration

This is the critical turning point for automated DAST. Integrating dynamic scans into your continuous integration (CI) pipelines allows you to test each build systematically. Invicti’s DAST engine can be triggered automatically during builds, scanning the latest version of the application in a test environment.

At this phase, teams can also define break-the-build policies, using severity levels or issue types to halt deployment if critical vulnerabilities are discovered. This turns security into a quality gate, aligned with the rest of your test automation framework.

Testing and QA

The testing phase is where DAST tools become especially powerful. With most features in place and authentication paths working, this is the ideal time to run full authenticated scans that explore deep application workflows, business logic paths, and dynamic states.

Testing environments typically mirror production closely, allowing DAST to validate vulnerabilities that would be exploitable in the real world. By running these scans ahead of release, teams can ensure no critical risks are introduced during QA and that vulnerabilities discovered during development have been fully remediated.

Pre-deployment and staging

Staging environments represent the final stop before go-live. A comprehensive DAST scan at this stage is essential. These scans should include:

• Full coverage of the application surface
• Validated login flows
• Tests against external integrations and third-party components

If your organization must meet regulatory standards such as PCI DSS or SOC 2, this is also when DAST-generated reports can be produced and archived to demonstrate compliance.

Production and monitoring

Although some teams hesitate to run DAST against production environments, it is possible (and advisable) when done with careful setup and the right safety controls and rate limits in place. Invicti provides advanced controls to support safe, non-disruptive production scanning, helping teams monitor for vulnerabilities that emerge due to configuration drift, unpatched components, or real-world changes post-deployment.

This continuous monitoring mindset allows DAST to act as a first line of defense, identifying new exposures that arise over time without waiting for the next release cycle.

Invicti DAST and SDLC integration

Invicti is designed to integrate across every phase of your SDLC – from development to post-deployment. Its flexible architecture and proof-based scanning make it ideal for building security into modern software delivery workflows.

CI/CD integration

Invicti plugs into popular CI/CD systems such as Jenkins, GitLab, and GitHub Actions, enabling you to run scans on every commit, merge, or release. These integrations make it easy to automate security testing without disrupting existing DevOps processes.

Dev tool integrations

Findings don’t just live in a dashboard. Invicti sends validated vulnerabilities directly to developer tools such as Jira, GitHub, or ServiceNow, where they can be triaged and remediated as part of your existing issue tracking workflows. This ensures that security feedback reaches developers in the tools they already use – keeping security in sync with velocity.

Zero-noise reporting

Invicti’s proof-based scanning verifies many common vulnerabilities by safely exploiting them and extracting proof, sometimes also supplying a safe, reproducible demonstration. This approach clearly shows actionable issues that cannot be false positives and enables developers to trust what they’re seeing. No wasted cycles, just real issues that need real action.

Policy-based scan controls

You can define different scan behaviors based on the SDLC stage or environment. For example, in early development, you might log all vulnerabilities but only fail builds on critical issues. In staging or production, you can enforce stricter thresholds to ensure compliance and release readiness.

Why a DAST-first SDLC makes sense

Choosing a DAST-first approach doesn’t mean using dynamic testing in isolation – it means making runtime testing a priority throughout your SDLC.

In practice, this means:

• Catching real, exploitable vulnerabilities early
  Validating findings before escalating them to developers
• Enabling security to move at the same pace as development
  
  

A DAST-first mindset also fosters collaboration. Developers aren’t flooded with vague or unverified alerts. Instead, they get actionable insights that help them write better code from the outset. Security becomes part of the feedback loop, not a final roadblock.

Invicti supports this model by delivering scalable, integrated, proof-based dynamic testing that fits naturally into your SDLC, regardless of your team size or tech stack.

Final thoughts: Build security in, don’t bolt it on

DAST is far more than a final checkpoint – it’s a strategic capability that strengthens the entire software development lifecycle.

By integrating DAST into multiple phases of the SDLC, you gain visibility, catch issues early, and empower developers to deliver secure code at speed. And when you use a tool like Invicti that prioritizes accuracy and integration, you turn security from a blocker into a driver of quality and agility. Apply the same SDLC scanning approach to your APIs – Invicti supports API discovery and testing so you cover more of the real attack surface.

It’s time to stop treating security as an afterthought. Make DAST part of your process, from design to deployment, and ship with confidence.

What to do next

• Explore how Invicti fits into your SDLC
• Book a demo to see full SDLC coverage in action
• Start using DAST to secure every phase of your software lifecycle

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