Software Composition Analysis
Identify and remediate vulnerabilities in open-source dependencies and third-party libraries.
Software Composition Analysis (SCA)
Modern applications are 70–90% open-source code. Every dependency you import — and every transitive dependency that comes with it — is a potential vulnerability that you inherit but did not write and may not be monitoring. Intelliroot's SCA service provides comprehensive visibility into your open-source and third-party dependency landscape: identifying known CVEs, tracking newly published vulnerabilities against your existing bill of materials, assessing licence compliance risk, and generating an authoritative Software Bill of Materials (SBOM) suitable for regulatory and customer submissions.
We deploy and tune SCA tooling (Snyk, OWASP Dependency-Check, Dependabot, or Trivy) into your development and CI/CD workflow, establish a vulnerability management process with clear SLAs by severity, and train your developers to make informed dependency management decisions — including safe upgrade paths, patching strategies, and criteria for accepting residual risk. Supply chain security is not a one-time exercise; our service establishes the continuous monitoring capability your organisation needs to stay ahead of the next Log4Shell-style disclosure.
Why Open-Source Risk Demands Continuous Attention
Transitive Dependencies Are the Hidden Risk
Direct dependencies are typically well-understood. Transitive dependencies — the libraries your libraries depend on — are frequently invisible to developers and account for the majority of vulnerable components in production applications.
CVEs Are Published Daily
A dependency that passed your last scan may have a Critical CVE published tomorrow. Without continuous monitoring and a vulnerability management process, your production applications silently accumulate exploitable risk between release cycles.
SBOM Is Becoming a Regulatory Requirement
US Executive Order 14028, EU Cyber Resilience Act, and emerging Indian software supply chain guidelines are mandating SBOM generation and maintenance. Customers and enterprise buyers are also increasingly requiring SBOMs as part of vendor risk programmes.
Licence Violations Carry Legal & Commercial Risk
GPL, AGPL, and LGPL licences in commercial software can trigger copyleft obligations and IP disputes. SCA identifies licence conflicts early — before a legal review or customer audit surfaces them at the worst possible moment.
What the Engagement Covers
Dependency Vulnerability Scanning
- Direct and transitive dependency inventory
- CVE matching against NVD, OSV, and GitHub Advisory DB
- EPSS-based exploitability prioritisation
- Reachability analysis where tooling supports it
- Container image dependency scanning (Docker, OCI)
SBOM Generation & Management
- CycloneDX and SPDX format SBOM generation
- Multi-language support (Java, Python, JavaScript, Go, Ruby, .NET)
- SBOM pipeline integration for automated regeneration
- SBOM signing and attestation configuration
- Customer and regulatory submission packaging
Licence Compliance
- Licence inventory across all direct and transitive dependencies
- Copyleft and proprietary licence conflict identification
- Licence policy definition and enforcement configuration
- Approved licence list and exception workflow setup
- Legal risk rating for identified licence conflicts
Developer Workflow & Patch Management
- CI/CD pipeline SCA integration and gate configuration
- Automated PR creation for safe dependency upgrades
- Patch feasibility analysis and upgrade path guidance
- Vendor advisory monitoring and alerting configuration
- Risk acceptance and suppression approval workflow
Our Implementation Approach
Dependency Inventory & Discovery
Scan all repositories to produce a complete inventory of direct and transitive dependencies across all languages and package managers (npm, Maven, pip, Go modules, NuGet, Bundler, Cargo). Identify previously unknown components and version drift between environments.
CVE Assessment & Risk Prioritisation
Match the dependency inventory against CVE databases (NVD, OSV, GitHub Advisory) and prioritise findings using CVSS scores, EPSS exploitability probability, and reachability analysis. Contextualise risk based on whether vulnerable code paths are actually exercised in your application.
Licence Compliance Review
Catalogue all licences across the dependency tree, flag copyleft and proprietary licence conflicts against your distribution model, and produce a risk-rated licence compliance report for your legal and procurement teams.
SBOM Generation & Attestation
Generate CycloneDX and SPDX SBOMs for each application and container image. Configure automated SBOM regeneration in the CI/CD pipeline on every build. Set up SBOM signing using Sigstore or similar tooling for supply chain integrity verification.
Tooling Integration & Policy Configuration
Embed selected SCA tooling into CI/CD pipelines with defined gate thresholds, automated remediation PR configuration, and integration with your issue tracker. Define and document the licence policy, suppression approval workflow, and SLA commitments by severity class.
Reporting, Training & Continuous Monitoring Handover
Deliver the initial assessment report covering all CVE findings and licence risks. Train developers on dependency management best practices, upgrade decision criteria, and the process for requesting risk acceptance. Hand over operational runbooks and a metrics dashboard for ongoing visibility.
Frequently Asked Questions
Deliverables
SCA Assessment Report
Risk-rated report of all CVE findings and licence conflicts across your dependency tree, with prioritisation guidance and remediation recommendations.
Software Bill of Materials (SBOM)
CycloneDX and SPDX format SBOMs for each assessed application and container image, signed and suitable for regulatory, customer, and procurement submissions.
Licence Compliance Report
Full licence inventory with copyleft and proprietary conflict identification, risk ratings, and recommended remediation actions for your legal and engineering teams.
CI/CD Pipeline Integration
Working SCA tooling embedded in your build pipeline with gate policies, automated upgrade PRs, and issue tracker integration for continuous dependency monitoring.
Dependency Management Runbook
Documented policy, SLA definitions, suppression approval workflow, and developer guidance for ongoing dependency vulnerability management and licence governance.
Supply Chain Security Attestation Pack
Customer and regulator-ready attestation package including signed SBOM, process summary, and evidence of continuous monitoring — suitable for vendor risk questionnaire responses.
Request a Security Assessment
Tell us about your environment and security objectives. We'll design a bespoke assessment and deliver a detailed proposal within 48 hours.