Choose coverage for the application lifecycle
Application security should help teams fix meaningful defects and release software with a clear understanding of residual risk. MMC UAE scopes AppSec and DevSecOps around application inventory, development languages, repositories and deployment practices. Separate internally developed software from purchased applications and external services, because the available remediation paths differ.
Establish the applications, APIs and environments in scope. Record who owns the code, who approves releases and who can authorise testing. A test that is technically available may be unsuitable for production without a controlled procedure. Use representative applications to establish coverage before expanding across the portfolio.
Compare SAST, SCA, DAST and interactive testing
Static testing examines supported code or build artefacts for relevant weakness patterns. Software composition analysis helps assess third-party components and dependencies. Dynamic testing observes a running application, while interactive approaches add context from an instrumented application. These techniques answer different questions and have different access requirements.
The project should define supported languages, build integration, authentication and the treatment of false positives. Findings need a route into the team’s issue workflow, with severity, ownership and a retest process. A security gate that blocks every release without triage can create a backlog rather than a usable control. Agree thresholds and exceptions with the application owner.
Extend the scope to APIs, cloud workloads and runtime
API security needs an inventory of exposed interfaces, authentication patterns and expected usage. Specifications may be incomplete, so validate what is actually deployed. Runtime controls such as WAAP or DDoS protection need a traffic-path design and a safe change process. Content delivery is an availability and performance service that should be scoped distinctly from application testing.
Cloud-native protection also requires context about clusters, workloads, identities and deployment configuration. Define which findings are resolved in code, which in infrastructure and which by an operating policy. Integration-platform or API automation work should have its own interface contract and acceptance criteria.
Portfolio evaluation and implementation scope
The directory includes Checkmarx, Invicti, Harness, Akamai, Wallarm, 42Crunch and other application-security references. Confirm current capabilities and supported integrations against the specific development estate. These listings do not establish that MMC has a partnership or certification with each manufacturer.
A delivery proposal should separate tool configuration, pipeline integration, application onboarding, testing and developer enablement. Request relevant implementation evidence and a pilot test matrix. Set access rules for source code, build artefacts, credentials and application data before any external tooling is connected.
UAE deployment and evidence at handover
For UAE organisations, consider where source code, vulnerability data and production requests are processed, and which support roles can access them. Customer security and privacy owners should determine applicable requirements. Do not use live sensitive data in test cases when synthetic or approved alternatives can satisfy the acceptance objective.
A useful handover includes the application coverage matrix, pipeline configuration, triage rules, exceptions and retest procedure. Demonstrate that an authorised test finding reaches the correct owner and that a fixed issue can be verified. Runtime changes need rollback and performance checks under agreed conditions. Send application counts, languages, pipeline details, API scope and test restrictions for a project quotation.
Acceptance should follow a finding through to a verified fix
Choose a representative approved finding and trace its lifecycle. The tool should identify the application and relevant context, the issue should reach the team responsible for remediation, and the developer should have enough detail to reproduce or understand it. After the change, a retest should establish whether the issue is resolved within the agreed scope. This is stronger evidence than a dashboard containing a large number of unreviewed findings.
Manage test credentials and environments as part of the security design. Dynamic and API testing may need access to authenticated functions, but that access must be bounded and approved. Keep destructive actions outside the test scope unless specifically authorised under a suitable procedure. Production testing requires particular care around rate, data changes and availability. Record the method rather than relying on an informal assumption that a scanner is safe by default.
Release policy should make exceptions visible. Some findings may be accepted temporarily by an authorised risk owner, while others must block a release. Define severity handling, expiry or review triggers and the evidence required for closure. The team should be able to explain why a release proceeded, not simply that a tool returned a green status. Keep coverage limitations, unsupported languages and excluded paths in the application register.
Capabilities included in this solution
These specific requirements are consolidated into this guide. Use the relevant brief to identify the systems and deliverables for your project.
Mobile Application Security
Plan security assessment and protection for mobile applications.
Define authorized testing scope and feed verified findings into the application release workflow.
Scope inputs: Application builds; APIs; Release process.
Unified Application Security
Coordinate application testing and remediation across teams.
Consolidate findings into a common ownership and exception process that developers can act on.
Scope inputs: Application inventory; Build pipelines; Risk priorities.
Static Application Security Testing
Plan source-code security checks within development workflows.
Choose supported codebases and agree how verified findings affect release decisions.
Scope inputs: Languages; Repositories; Build process.
Software Composition Analysis
Review third-party components in application builds.
Agree risk and licence policies, then assign responsibility for updating affected components.
Scope inputs: Dependency manifests; Build pipelines; Component policy.
Interactive Application Security Testing
Plan security testing while applications execute.
Use representative test flows and validate that instrumentation fits the approved environment.
Scope inputs: Runtime platforms; Test coverage; Test environments.
DevSecOps Services
Bring security review into software delivery.
Define lightweight checks and escalation rules that fit the existing development process.
Scope inputs: Delivery pipeline; Team roles; Release controls.
API Security Services
Plan discovery and protection of business APIs.
Document sensitive operations and validate the proposed controls against normal API behaviour.
Scope inputs: API inventory; Authentication flows; Application owners.
Dynamic Application Security Testing
Plan testing of running web applications.
Agree assessment authorization and safe test boundaries with application owners.
Scope inputs: Application URLs; Test accounts; Approved windows.
Application Security Posture Management
Coordinate application risk findings and remediation.
Connect findings to accountable teams and agree how duplicates and accepted risks are handled.
Scope inputs: Application estate; Testing tools; Development teams.
DDoS Protection and WAAP
Plan availability and protection for public web services.
Define the traffic path and escalation plan, then rehearse authorized failover arrangements.
Scope inputs: Public applications; Traffic patterns; Availability objectives.
Content Delivery Network Services
Plan delivery of public website and application content.
Validate cache behaviour, origin protection and change control before routing live traffic.
Scope inputs: Domains; Origin servers; Cache rules.
Cloud Native Application Protection
Review posture and workload protection in cloud environments.
Agree account visibility and responsibility for remediating findings before expanding coverage.
Scope inputs: Cloud accounts; Workloads; Platform teams.
Integration Platform and API Automation
Plan connections between applications, data and workflow services.
Define error handling, permissions and human approval steps for actions affecting business systems.
Scope inputs: Applications; APIs; Workflow owners.
UAE control requirements: establish applicability first
Ask your authorised security, privacy and sector advisers which requirements apply to your entity and service. Use their control and evidence decisions in the design, acceptance plan and operating procedures.
- UAE Information Assurance Regulation (often referenced as NESA / UAE IA)
- DESC Information Security Regulation: Dubai government control requirements
- DoH AAMEN and ADHICS resources for Abu Dhabi healthcare
- UAE Government overview of personal data protection laws
These official resources help establish the source of requirements. A product, project guide or completed installation does not by itself establish compliance or certification.