Bridgecrew Review

Bridgecrew is a cloud security platform that provides continuous infrastructure as code (IaC) scanning, cloud security posture management, and automated remediation for Terraform and other IaC tools. It helps teams shift security left by identifying misconfigurations and compliance violations early in the development process.

Key Features

• IaC Security Scanning: Identifies security issues in Terraform code before deployment
• Custom Policies: Create and enforce organization-specific security policies
• Automated Fixes: Generates pull requests with fixes for security issues
• CI/CD Integration: Seamlessly integrates with popular CI/CD pipelines
• Developer Workflows: IDE plugins for real-time feedback during development
• Supply Chain Security: Scans module dependencies for vulnerabilities
• Drift Detection: Identifies differences between IaC and deployed resources

Pros and Cons

Pros

• Comprehensive security coverage with 300+ built-in policies
• Intuitive dashboard with clear remediation instructions
• Strong integration with development workflows
• Multi-cloud and multi-framework support
• Automated remediation reduces manual effort
• Robust compliance benchmarks (CIS, SOC2, HIPAA, etc.)

Cons

• Advanced features require paid subscription
• Some remediations require manual review and adjustment
• May generate false positives in complex environments
• Limited customization in lower-tier plans
• Learning curve for custom policy creation

Security Integration

Bridgecrew complements and enforces the practices outlined in our Terraform Security Best Practices article. It automatically identifies issues like hardcoded credentials, excessive permissions, and unencrypted resources.

Compliance Automation

For organizations implementing regulatory compliance, Bridgecrew provides ready-to-use policies that align with our Terraform Compliance Automation strategies, simplifying the enforcement of complex requirements.

CI/CD Implementation

When integrated into the pipeline described in our Terraform CI/CD Pipeline article, Bridgecrew adds an essential security validation step, preventing vulnerable configurations from reaching production.

Governance Framework

Bridgecrew's policy enforcement capabilities make it a valuable component of a broader Terraform Enterprise Governance strategy, providing visibility and control across distributed teams.