Dark Reading Launches 2025 State of Application Security Survey

Dark Reading Opens The State of Application Security Survey

Dark Reading has launched its annual State of Application Security survey, inviting over 100 cybersecurity professionals to share insights into the evolving threat landscape. Last year’s survey revealed that 44% of respondents identified a lack of application security skills as their biggest challenge.

Why This Matters

Organizations struggle to balance application security with the need for rapid software development, creating a significant risk exposure. Application vulnerabilities remain a primary attack vector, and addressing them effectively requires integrating security throughout the entire software development lifecycle, a process often hampered by resource constraints and skills gaps. Failure to do so can result in costly breaches and reputational damage.

Key Insights

• 44% of respondents cited a lack of application security skills as their biggest AppSec obstacle (2025): This highlights the critical need for training and development in this area.
• SBOM Adoption: 39% of organizations utilize Software Bill of Materials (SBOM) for vulnerability identification, risk assessment, and patch prioritization.
• Dependency Management: 49% of organizations leverage a centralized repository to manage software dependencies.

Practical Applications

• Use Case: Large financial institutions are using survey data to benchmark their application security programs against industry peers, identifying areas for improvement in their DevSecOps practices.
• Pitfall: Relying solely on automated vulnerability scanning without incorporating manual code review can lead to missed vulnerabilities and a false sense of security.

References:

• https://www.darkreading.com/application-security/dark-reading-opens-state-appsec-survey