Commit Conformity Verification System for Code Security

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Solution Overview

Problem

Open source software projects face risks due to malicious or vulnerable code being introduced through contributions, which can be hidden in innocuous-looking commit messages, leading to security vulnerabilities and poor documentation, hindering team productivity.

Innovation Solution

A commit conformity verification system using natural language processing and machine learning to analyze the discrepancy between commit messages and code changes, generating a score to detect malicious or misleading commits and improve documentation quality.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If code review relies on textual description (commit message), then review process is simple and fast, but malicious code can be introduced through misleading messages

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecode review speedVSAvoidsecurity
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent introduces an intermediary verification system that acts as a mediator between the commit message and the code changes. This system uses AI/ML models to analyze both the textual description and the actual code modifications, comparing them for consistency. The intermediary verification layer detects discrepancies without requiring manual review of every code change, thus maintaining speed while improving security.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent replaces the mechanical manual review process with an automated AI/ML-based verification system. Instead of relying solely on human reviewers to parse commit messages and code changes manually, the system uses machine learning models trained to identify malicious patterns and inconsistencies, substituting mechanical human analysis with intelligent automated detection.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

2Reliability

If thorough code review is performed, then security is improved, but time consumption increases

Engineering Contradiction:
ImprovesecurityVSAvoidcode review time
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies preliminary action by performing automated verification of commit conformity before the code is merged into the main repository. The AI/ML system analyzes the commit message and code changes in advance, flagging potential issues prior to integration. This preliminary screening eliminates the need for thorough manual review of all commits, reducing time while maintaining security.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system enables self-service verification where the code submission process itself includes automated self-checking against security criteria. The AI model automatically evaluates whether the commit message accurately reflects the code changes and whether security thresholds are met, allowing the system to verify its own integrity without requiring extensive human intervention.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

3Productivity

If commit message accuracy is not verified, then development process is efficient, but documentation quality deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedevelopment efficiencyVSAvoiddocumentation quality
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSLoss of information

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements feedback mechanisms where the AI/ML system continuously monitors and compares commit messages against actual code changes. When discrepancies are detected, the system provides feedback to the developer, requesting clarification or correction. This feedback loop ensures documentation accuracy without significantly impacting development efficiency, as the automated nature of the verification allows for rapid iteration.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

Data Source

PatentUS11972258B2Commit conformity verification system
Publication Date: 2024.04.30 SAP SE
  • US11972258B2 patent drawing
  • US11972258B2 patent drawing
  • US11972258B2 patent drawing

AI summary

Systems and methods are provided for training a machine learning model to generate a score indicating a level of discrepancy between a commit message and a corresponding code change. The computing system receives a commit comprising a given commit message and a given corresponding code change and analyzes, using the trained machine learning model, the given commit message and given corresponding code change to generate a score indicating the level of discrepancy between the given commit message and the given corresponding code change of the received commit.