Sast Configuration

When to use this skill

Use Sast Configuration when an AI agent needs a reusable SKILL.md workflow for this job: Configure Static Application Security Testing (SAST) tools for automated vulnerability detection in application code. Use when setting up security scanning, implementing DevSecOps practices, or automating code vulnerability detection.

When not to use it

Skip Sast Configuration when the task is outside the coding category, or when a more specific skill in this directory already covers the same workflow with clearer triggers.

How to install

1. Personal install: create ~/.claude/skills/sast-configuration/SKILL.md (and any bundled scripts) so Claude Code, Claude Desktop, and compatible agents can load it in every project.
2. Project install: commit the same folder at .claude/skills/sast-configuration/ so teammates get the skill with the repo.
3. Restart the agent session after copying files so it re-scans the skills directory, then ask for the task in words that match the skill description.

Full install guide for Claude, Cursor, and Codex

What this skill does

# SAST Configuration

Static Application Security Testing (SAST) tool setup, configuration, and custom rule creation for comprehensive security scanning across multiple programming languages.

## Overview

This skill provides comprehensive guidance for setting up and configuring SAST tools including Semgrep, SonarQube, and CodeQL. Use this skill when you need to:

- Set up SAST scanning in CI/CD pipelines - Create custom security rules for your codebase - Configure quality gates and compliance policies - Optimize scan performance and reduce false positives - Integrate multiple SAST tools for defense-in-depth

## Core Capabilities

### 1. Semgrep Configuration

- Custom rule creation with pattern matching - Language-specific security rules (Python, JavaScript, Go, Java, etc.) - CI/CD integration (GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, Jenkins) - False positive tuning and rule optimization - Organizational policy enforcement

### 2. SonarQube Setup

- Quality gate configuration - Security hotspot analysis - Code coverage and technical debt tracking - Custom quality profiles for languages - Enterprise integration with LDAP/SAML

### 3. CodeQL Analysis

- GitHub Advanced Security integration - Custom query development - Vulnerability variant analysis - Security research workflows - SARIF result processing

## Quick Start

### Initial Assessment

1. Identify primary programming languages in your codebase 2. Determine compliance requirements (PCI-DSS, SOC 2, etc.) 3. Choose SAST tool based on language support and integration needs 4. Review baseline scan to understand current security posture

### Basic Setup

```bash # Semgrep quick start pip install semgrep semgrep --config=auto --error

# SonarQube with Docker docker run -d --name sonarqube -p 9000:9000 sonarqube:10.8-community

# CodeQL CLI setup gh extension install github/gh-codeql codeql database create mydb --language=python ```

## Integration Patterns

### CI/CD Pipeline Integration

```yaml # GitHub Actions example - name: Run Semgrep uses: returntocorp/semgrep-action@v1 with: config: >- p/security-audit p/owasp-top-ten ```

### Pre-commit Hook

```bash # .pre-commit-config.yaml - repo: https://github.com/returntocorp/semgrep rev: v1.45.0 hooks: - id: semgrep args: ['--config=auto', '--error'] ```

## Best Practices

1. **Start with Baseline** - Run initial scan to establish security baseline - Prioritize critical and high severity findings - Create remediation roadmap

2. **Incremental Adoption** - Begin with security-focused rules - Gradually add code quality rules - Implement blocking only for critical issues

3. **False Positive Management** - Document legitimate suppressions - Create allow lists for known safe patterns - Regularly review suppressed findings

4. **Performance Optimization** - Exclude test files and generated code - Use incremental scanning for large codebases - Cache scan results in CI/CD

5. **Team Enablement** - Provide security training for developers - Create internal documentation for common patterns - Establish security champions program

## Common Use Cases

### New Project Setup

```bash ./scripts/run-sast.sh --setup --language python --tools semgrep,sonarqube ```

### Custom Rule Development

```yaml # See references/semgrep-rules.md for detailed examples rules: - id: hardcoded-jwt-secret pattern: jwt.encode($DATA, "...", ...) message: JWT secret should not be hardcoded severity: ERROR ```

### Compliance Scanning

```bash # PCI-DSS focused scan semgrep --config p/pci-dss --json -o pci-scan-results.json ```

## Troubleshooting

### High False Positive Rate

- Review and tune rule sensitivity - Add path filters to exclude test files - Use nostmt metadata for noisy patterns - Create organization-specific rule exceptions

### Performance Issues

- Enable incremental scanning - Parallelize scans across modules - Optimize rule patterns for efficiency - Cache dependencies and scan results

### Integration Failures

- Verify API tokens and credentials - Check network connectivity and proxy settings - Review SARIF output format compatibility - Validate CI/CD runner permissions

## Related Skills

- [OWASP Top 10 Checklist](../owasp-top10-checklist/SKILL.md) - [Container Security](../container-security/SKILL.md) - [Dependency Scanning](../dependency-scanning/SKILL.md)

## Tool Comparison

| Tool | Best For | Language Support | Cost | Integration | | --------- | ------------------------ | ---------------- | --------------- | ------------- | | Semgrep | Custom rules, fast scans | 30+ languages | Free/Enterprise | Excellent | | SonarQube | Code quality + security | 25+ languages | Free/Commercial | Good | | CodeQL | Deep analysis, research | 10+ languages | Free (OSS) | GitHub native |

## Next Steps

1. Complete initial SAST tool setup 2. Run baseline security scan 3. Create custom rules for organization-specific patterns 4. Integrate into CI/CD pipeline 5. Establish security gate policies 6. Train development team on findings and remediation

Intended uses

• Use Sast Configuration when this documented workflow matches the task.