ci-cd-supply-chain-security

name	ci-cd-supply-chain-security
description	Audit CI/CD pipelines and software supply chains for poisoning vectors, secret exposure, artifact tampering, dependency confusion, and build environment compromise. Covers GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, Jenkins, and container build pipelines.
applyTo	**/*.{yml,yaml,json,groovy,Jenkinsfile,Dockerfile,dockerfile,toml,cfg,sh,bash,ps1}

CI/CD & Supply Chain Security

Purpose

Audit continuous integration/delivery pipelines and software supply chains for compromise vectors. CI/CD systems are high-value targets: they hold deployment credentials, build artifacts, and have write access to production. Supply chain attacks (dependency confusion, typosquatting, artifact tampering) bypass traditional application security controls entirely.

Triggers

• CI/CD configuration files found in repository (.github/workflows, .gitlab-ci.yml, Jenkinsfile)
• User requests pipeline security review
• Dependency audit surfaces supply chain concerns
• New deployment pipeline being configured
• Security governance engagement includes infrastructure

Required Inputs

Input	Description	Required
governance_context	Active engagement governance record	Yes
pipeline_configs	CI/CD config files (workflow YAML, Jenkinsfile, etc.)	Yes
ci_platform	GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, Jenkins, CircleCI, etc.	Auto-detected
package_registries	npm, PyPI, Docker Hub, internal registries in use	Recommended
deployment_targets	Where artifacts deploy to (cloud, K8s, servers)	Recommended

Workflow

1. Scope Verification — Confirm CI/CD systems and registries are within authorized scope.

2. Pipeline Configuration Review

   GitHub Actions:

   • Review all workflow files in .github/workflows/
   • Check pull_request_target trigger (runs with write access on untrusted PR)
   • Check workflow_run chaining for privilege escalation
   • Review permissions: block — avoid default write-all
   • Check for ${{ github.event.*.body }} or similar injection in run: steps
   • Verify actions pinned to SHA (not tag/branch — mutable references)
   • Review third-party actions for trust (verified publisher, source audit)
   • Check GITHUB_TOKEN permissions scope
   • Review secret access: which jobs/steps can access which secrets?
   • Check for if: conditions that can be bypassed
   • Review artifact upload/download for path traversal

   GitLab CI:

   • Review .gitlab-ci.yml and included templates
   • Check for script injection via CI/CD variables
   • Review protected branches and variable protection
   • Check runner configuration (shared vs. dedicated)
   • Review merge request pipeline vs. branch pipeline trust
   • Verify container image sources in image: directives
   • Check for artifacts: exposure across jobs
   • Review trigger: for cross-project pipeline abuse

   Jenkins:

   • Review Jenkinsfile and shared libraries
   • Check for Groovy sandbox escapes
   • Review plugin security (known CVEs in installed plugins)
   • Check node/agent security (who can run on which agent?)
   • Review credential binding and credential scope
   • Check for sh steps with injected variables
   • Review pipeline approval gates and access controls

   General Pipeline Security:

   • Secrets not echoed/printed in build logs
   • Build environment hardened (minimal tools, no unnecessary network)
   • Pipeline steps run as non-root where possible
   • Build cache not shared across untrusted builds
   • Artifact signing implemented
   • Reproducible builds configured where feasible

3. Secret Exposure in Pipelines

   • Secrets in environment variables visible to all steps (not scoped)
   • Secrets printed in debug/verbose build output
   • Secrets in build artifacts or container layers
   • Secrets accessible from pull request / merge request pipelines (untrusted code)
   • Secret rotation: how often? Automated?
   • Emergency revocation process for compromised pipeline secrets

4. Dependency Supply Chain Analysis

   Dependency Confusion / Substitution:

   • Private package names registered on public registries?
   • Package manager configured to check private registry first?
   • Scoped packages used (@org/package-name)?
   • Lock files pinned to specific versions with integrity hashes?

   Typosquatting:

   • Dependencies with similar names to popular packages?
   • Dependencies with very few downloads / recent creation date?

   Compromised Maintainer:

   • Dependencies maintained by single developer?
   • Recent ownership transfers on dependencies?
   • Post-install scripts doing network calls or suspicious operations?

   Build-Time Attacks:

   • Setup.py / postinstall scripts executing arbitrary code
   • Makefile targets with network access during build
   • Compiler plugins or build tool extensions from untrusted sources
   • AI-assisted code generation risk: If the CI pipeline generates or accepts AI-written code (Copilot, Cursor, etc. in automated workflows), verify that hallucinated dependency names are caught before install. Implement a registry pre-check step: verify every new package exists with expected publisher before npm install / pip install runs.

5. Artifact Integrity

   • Container images signed (Docker Content Trust, cosign/sigstore)?
   • Package artifacts signed and checksum-verified?
   • SBOM (Software Bill of Materials) generated?
   • Provenance attestation (SLSA framework compliance)?
   • Artifact storage access controls (who can push to registry)?
   • Immutable tags/versions enforced (prevent tag overwrite)?

6. Container Build Security

   • Base images from trusted sources? Pinned by digest (not :latest)?
   • Multi-stage builds to minimize attack surface?
   • No secrets in Dockerfile (ENV, ARG, COPY of .env)
   • No secrets in container layers (check with dive or docker history)
   • Container scanning in pipeline (Trivy, Grype, Snyk Container)?
   • Non-root USER directive?
   • Minimal OS packages installed?

7. Deployment Pipeline Security

   • Deployment credentials scoped to minimum necessary permissions?
   • Deployment approval gates for production?
   • Rollback mechanism tested and functional?
   • Deployment audit trail (who deployed what, when)?
   • Canary/blue-green deployment with security validation gate?
   • Infrastructure-as-Code changes reviewed before apply?

8. SLSA Framework Assessment (if applicable)

   • SLSA Level 1: Build process documented
   • SLSA Level 2: Hosted build platform, signed provenance
   • SLSA Level 3: Hardened build platform, non-falsifiable provenance
   • SLSA Level 4: Hermetic, reproducible build

9. Classify & Route — Per severity-matrix.md, route to bug-bounty-triage

Allowed Actions

• Read and analyze all CI/CD configuration files
• Review pipeline execution logs (if authorized)
• Analyze dependency manifests and lock files
• Test for dependency confusion on public registries (passive lookup only)
• Review container image layers and build history
• Analyze artifact signing and provenance
• Check build environment configuration
• Review secret management integration
• Assess SLSA compliance level

Forbidden Actions

• Execute code in CI/CD environments without authorization
• Publish packages to public registries
• Modify pipeline configurations without permission
• Trigger pipeline runs on production branches without authorization
• Exfiltrate pipeline secrets
• Tamper with build artifacts
• Register typosquat packages (even for testing)

Output Format

### [FINDING-ID]: [Title]

| Field | Value |
|-------|-------|
| **Severity** | [S1-S5] |
| **Confidence** | [C1-C4] |
| **Status** | Suspected / Confirmed |
| **Category** | [CWE / SLSA / Supply Chain] |
| **CI Platform** | GitHub Actions / GitLab CI / Jenkins / Other |
| **Affected File** | [workflow file:line] |

#### Issue Summary
[What the pipeline/supply chain weakness is]

#### Evidence
\```yaml
[Pipeline config snippet showing the vulnerability]
\```

**Attack Scenario:**
1. [How attacker exploits this in practice]
2. [What access/impact attacker achieves]

#### Impact
[Credential theft, artifact tampering, production compromise, etc.]

#### Remediation
\```yaml
[Corrected pipeline configuration]
\```

#### Validation Notes
[How to verify fix: test pipeline, check permissions, validate signing]

References

• references/secrets-and-config-checklist.md — CI/CD secret hygiene
• references/severity-matrix.md — Severity classification