Kics
Overview
Kics is a devsecops tool that appears across devsecops workflows in this knowledge base. It is referenced as part of higher-level security analysis, investigation, monitoring, or validation activity rather than as an end in itself.
What It Is
Kics is best understood as a devsecops tool in this knowledge base. Its role is conceptual and system-facing rather than procedural: it gives analysts or defenders a structured way to examine evidence, model system behavior, or reason about security state.
How It Works
Kics works by turning technical inputs into more interpretable outputs at the system level. Across the source skills, it appears as part of larger analysis, investigation, monitoring, or validation loops rather than as a standalone end state.
Core Concepts
- devsecops
- cicd
- iac security
- checkov
- tfsec
- terraform
- secure sdlc
Typical Workflow
- checkov -d ./terraform/ --framework terraform --output cli --output json --output-file-path ./results
- checkov -f main.tf --output json
- terraform init && terraform plan -out=tfplan
- terraform show -json tfplan > tfplan.json
- checkov -f tfplan.json --framework terraform_plan
- checkov -d ./terraform/ --check CKV_AWS_18,CKV_AWS_19,CKV_AWS_20
Use Cases
- When provisioning cloud infrastructure with Terraform, CloudFormation, or Pulumi and needing automated security validation
- When compliance frameworks require evidence of infrastructure configuration review before deployment
- When preventing common cloud misconfigurations like public S3 buckets, open security groups, or unencrypted storage
- When establishing guardrails that block insecure infrastructure changes in pull requests
- When managing multi-cloud environments requiring consistent security policies across AWS, Azure, and GCP
Limitations
- Output still depends on context, data quality, and surrounding analysis.
- The tool should be interpreted as part of a broader workflow, not as a complete answer by itself.
- Capabilities and visibility vary depending on environment, integrations, and available inputs.
Related Tools
- Checkov, Snyk IaC, Terrascan, Tfsec
Sources
- implementing-infrastructure-as-code-security-scanning