How to generate a software bill of materials

Jan 31, 2024 / 2 min read

The complexity of modern applications (think open source, proprietary and commercial code) makes the management of software supply chain security a business-critical effort. Robust software supply chain security requires a thorough understanding of your organization’s software components - a complete visibility into the makeup of your code - best achieved with a Software Bill of Materials (SBOM).

Why you need an SBOM

With the continued expansion of open source software, the software supply chain becomes more complicated and obscure, and involves more links and dependencies than ever before. The only hope of mitigating this risk is by achieving and maintaining visibility into the open source software in use, and addressing areas of risk as they are identified.

Additionally, any proprietary code in an organization’s applications is written by developers, who often lack security experience or training. Similar to open source software, the risks of proprietary code are complex and can be difficult to identify, even by seasoned security experts. These vulnerabilities in your own code can serve as entry points to sensitive data and systems. This is why it’s so important to secure proprietary software alongside third-party code in an application.

The most efficient and effective way to identify and limit these risks is, an accurate and robust SBOM that covers all of your code.

How to generate an SBOM with Black Duck SCA

Black Duck SCA simplifies SBOM generation, employing various open-source discovery methods to identify both direct and transitive dependencies. With Black Duck, creating a complete and accurate SBOM doesn't require new processes or reduce development speed. Black Duck can automatically scan applications each time a developer commits changes to the main branch. Its multifactor detection identifies all dependencies, creating a complete component inventory that lays bare known risks, and it can be exported in an NTIA-compliant SBOM format.

While modern software supply chains can be quite involved, Black Duck demystifies the creation of an SBOM, helping you easily identify potential risks and effortlessly comply with regulations. You can read more about how Black Duck can help create your simple yet detailed SBOM, or schedule a demo today.

Better yet, read Gartner's report, 'Mitigate Enterprise Software Supply Chain Security Risks' to understand why an SBOM is so critical to supply chain security.