Techniques and tools that identifies software vulnerabilities

Authors:

  • Christian Gustavsson
  • Christian Vestlund
  • Viktor Andersson
  • Daniel Eidenskog
  • Lovisa Nyholm
  • Casper Jensen

Publish date: 2024-12-17

Report number: FOI-R--5692--SE

Pages: 80

Written in: Swedish

Keywords:

  • software
  • vulnerability
  • technique
  • tool
  • cyber security

Abstract

Testing and verifying the security features of software is an active area of research. This study scans the research area from 2014 to 2024 for techniques and tools that can detect software vulnerabilities. In total, the report inventories 237 tools, of which the 7 with the highest assessed maturity level are the basis for a deeper analysis and description. Despite the extensive research in the field, it contains few tools with a high level of maturity. Of all the tools discussed in the report, most focus on identifying individual types of vulnerabilities, which limits their scope of use. Recent research has been trying to find a broader approach by combining several techniques into hybrid tools or by introducing machine learning models trained to identify flaws. However, further research is needed before these can be considered proven techniques.