Software Build Integrity Validation With Source Code Assertions
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing software development processes are vulnerable to malicious code being introduced or security features being modified during the build process, which conventional methods like binary and source code analysis fail to detect, leading to undetectable security bugs or backdoors in software products.
Innovation Solution
A build integrity validation system that analyzes build artifacts and compares them against source code to ensure no additional code was introduced and no code or data was removed, using source code assertions to identify discrepancies and generate reports for further analysis.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional binary analysis and source code analysis are used to detect malicious code, then the detection process is simple and fast, but the detection capability is insufficient and cannot identify malicious code introduced during the build process
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by creating checksums and integrity markers of source code before the build process, and then compares these pre-established values against the build artifacts afterward. This preliminary documentation of the source code state enables reliable detection of any modifications introduced during building without requiring complex real-time monitoring
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces intermediary elements including checksums, integrity markers, and build logs that mediate between the source code and build artifacts. These intermediaries serve as可比 reference points that simplify the comparison process while enhancing detection capability, allowing the system to identify discrepancies without directly analyzing complex code structures
2Reliability
If the build process is monitored to detect malicious code introduction, then security is improved, but the build process becomes more complex and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The system creates lightweight copies of critical source code characteristics (checksums, integrity markers) rather than copying or analyzing the entire source code. These simplified representations can be generated and compared rapidly, maintaining build integrity verification while minimizing time loss and avoiding complex real-time code analysis
Solution Approach 2:
By pre-computing checksums and integrity markers before the build process, the system eliminates the need for time-consuming analysis during or after building. The preliminary preparation of reference values enables fast comparison operations that do not significantly impact build time
3Reliability
If comprehensive analysis of build artifacts is performed to ensure no code was introduced, then security is improved, but the complexity of the validation system increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system extracts only the essential characteristics of source code (checksums, integrity markers, file lists) rather than analyzing the complete source code or build artifacts. This extraction of critical attributes simplifies the validation system while maintaining comprehensive security coverage by focusing on the most important integrity indicators
Data Source
AI summary
Techniques are described for validating build integrity of software products, such as applications or containers. More specifically, this disclosure describes a build integrity validation system that analyzes build artifacts resulting from a software build process to create source code assertions, and compares the assertions against the source code from which the build artifacts were produced. The build integrity validation system validates that a particular build artifact is producible by the source code to ensure that no additional code was introduced during the build process. The build integrity validation system may also reverse the analysis to validate that the source code is able to produce the build artifacts to ensure that no code was removed or modified during the build process. The build integrity validation system identifies and reports identified discrepancies between the source code and the build artifacts resulting from the software build process of the source code.