Automated Audits in GitHub Actions

1. Introduction

Automated audits help ensure that software is compliant with security and quality standards. GitHub Actions provides a powerful platform for automating these audits, allowing developers to integrate checks directly within their CI/CD pipelines.

2. Key Concepts

Definition

Automated audits in the context of GitHub Actions refer to the processes and workflows set up to automatically check code quality, security vulnerabilities, and compliance with best practices every time code is pushed to the repository.

Key Components

**Workflows**: Define the automation process using YAML files.
**Jobs**: Independent units of work that can be executed in parallel or sequentially.
**Actions**: Reusable units of code that can be combined to create workflows.

3. Step-by-Step Guide

Follow these steps to set up automated audits in GitHub Actions:

**Create a GitHub repository**
**Add a YAML file for the workflow**: Create a file under `.github/workflows/` directory.

Remember to name your workflow file descriptively, e.g., `audit.yml`.

**Define the workflow**: Add triggers, jobs, and actions in the YAML file.
**Run audits**: Utilize actions for specific audits, such as `eslint`, `bandit`, or security scanners.


name: Automated Audit

on:
  push:
    branches: [ main ]
  pull_request:
    branches: [ main ]

jobs:
  audit:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - name: Checkout code
        uses: actions/checkout@v2
      - name: Run ESLint
        run: npm run lint
      - name: Run Bandit
        run: bandit -r ./
        env:
          BANDIT_CONFIG: .bandit.yml

4. Best Practices

Recommendations

**Run audits on every push and pull request** to catch issues early.
**Use caching** to speed up the workflow runs, especially for dependencies.
**Fail the build** on audit failures to enforce compliance.
**Review audit reports** and integrate them into your code review process.

5. FAQ

What types of audits can be automated?

Common audits include code quality checks, security vulnerability scans, compliance audits, and performance benchmarks.

How do I monitor the results of automated audits?

Audit results can be viewed in the Actions tab of your GitHub repository, where you can see logs and results for each workflow run.

Can I use third-party actions for audits?

Yes, GitHub Marketplace offers numerous third-party actions specifically designed for various types of audits.