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In this lesson, we’ll walk through scanning Kubernetes resource definitions using Kubesec. Kubesec helps you enforce cluster security best practices with a simple CLI, Docker image, or HTTP API.

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Table of Contents

  1. Sample Pod Specification
  2. Scanning with Kubesec
    • CLI
    • Docker Image
    • HTTP API
  3. Bash Wrapper for HTTP API
  4. Jenkins Pipeline Integration
  5. Improving Your Security Score
  6. References

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Sample Pod Specification

Here’s a minimal Pod manifest that enables a read-only root filesystem: 
apiVersion: v1
kind: Pod
metadata:
  name: kubesec-demo
spec:
  containers:
    - name: kubesec-demo
      image: gcr.io/google-samples/node-hello:1.0
      securityContext:
        readOnlyRootFilesystem: true

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Scanning with Kubesec

You can scan your YAML definitions in three ways:
MethodCommand Example
CLIkubesec scan pod.yaml
Docker imagedocker run --rm -i kubesec/kubesec:latest scan /dev/stdin < pod.yaml
HTTP APIcurl -sSX POST --data-binary @"pod.yaml" https://v2.kubesec.io/scan

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1. CLI

Install the kubesec binary, then run: 
$ kubesec scan pod.yaml
Sample JSON output: 
[
  {
    "object": "Pod/kubesec-demo.default",
    "valid": true,
    "message": "Passed with a score of 1 points",
    "score": 1,
    "scoring": [
      {
        "id": "ReadOnlyRootFilesystem",
        "selector": "containers[].securityContext.readOnlyRootFilesystem == true",
        "reason": "Immutable root filesystems increase attack cost",
        "points": 1
      }
    ],
    "advice": [
      {
        "id": "ServiceAccountName",
        "selector": ".spec.serviceAccountName",
        "reason": "Use least-privilege service accounts",
        "points": 1
      },
      {
        "id": "AppArmorAny",
        "selector": "metadata.annotations.\"container.apparmor.security.beta.kubernetes.io/nginx\"",
        "reason": "Define AppArmor policies for stronger isolation",
        "points": 1
      },
      {
        "id": "SeccompAny",
        "selector": "metadata.annotations.\"container.seccomp.security.alpha.kubernetes.io/pod\"",
        "reason": "Apply Seccomp profiles to limit syscalls",
        "points": 1
      },
      {
        "id": "LimitsCPU",
        "selector": "containers[].resources.limits.cpu",
        "reason": "Prevent DoS by enforcing CPU limits",
        "points": 1
      },
      {
        "id": "LimitsMemory",
        "selector": "containers[].resources.limits.memory",
        "reason": "Prevent DoS by enforcing memory limits",
        "points": 1
      }
    ]
  }
]

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Bash Wrapper for HTTP API

Create a shell function to simplify HTTP scans: 
#!/usr/bin/env bash
kubesec_scan() {
  local FILE="${1:?Usage: kubesec_scan <file.yaml>}"
  [[ ! -f "$FILE" ]] && { echo "Error: $FILE not found"; return 1; }

  curl -sSX POST \
    --data-binary @"$FILE" \
    https://v2.kubesec.io/scan
}
Call it with: 
$ kubesec_scan pod.yaml

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Jenkins Pipeline Integration

Here’s a sample Jenkinsfile that builds a Docker image, pushes it, then runs parallel scans with Conftest and Kubesec: 
pipeline {
  agent any

  stages {
    stage('Docker Build & Push') {
      steps {
        withDockerRegistry([credentialsId: 'docker-hub', url: '']) {
          sh 'docker build -t youruser/app:$GIT_COMMIT .'
          sh 'docker push youruser/app:$GIT_COMMIT'
        }
      }
    }

    stage('Vulnerability Scan') {
      steps {
        parallel(
          'OPA Scan': {
            sh '''
              docker run --rm -v $(pwd):/project \
                openpolicyagent/conftest test \
                --policy opa-k8s-security.rego \
                k8s_deployment_service.yaml
            '''
          },
          'Kubesec Scan': {
            sh 'bash kubesec-scan.sh'
          }
        )
      }
    }
  }
}

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kubesec-scan.sh

#!/usr/bin/env bash
set -euo pipefail

scan_result=$(curl -sSX POST --data-binary @"k8s_deployment_service.yaml" https://v2.kubesec.io/scan)
scan_score=$(jq -r '.[0].score' <<<"$scan_result")
scan_message=$(jq -r '.[0].message' <<<"$scan_result")

echo "Scan Score: $scan_score"
if [[ "$scan_score" -ge 5 ]]; then
  echo "✅ Kubesec Scan Passed: $scan_message"
else
  echo "❌ Kubesec Scan Failed: $scan_message (score $scan_score < 5)"
  exit 1
fi
Adjust the threshold (5 points) to match your team’s security policy.

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Improving Your Security Score

Based on the advice from Kubesec, let’s update our Deployment to include:
  • A dedicated service account
  • AppArmor & Seccomp annotations
  • CPU & memory limits
  • Immutable root filesystem
  • Non-root user execution
apiVersion: apps/v1
kind: Deployment
metadata:
  name: devsecops
  labels:
    app: devsecops
spec:
  replicas: 2
  selector:
    matchLabels:
      app: devsecops
  template:
    metadata:
      labels:
        app: devsecops
      annotations:
        container.apparmor.security.beta.kubernetes.io/devsecops-container: runtime/default
        container.seccomp.security.alpha.kubernetes.io/devsecops-container: runtime/default
    spec:
      serviceAccountName: default
      containers:
        - name: devsecops-container
          image: youruser/app:latest
          securityContext:
            runAsNonRoot: true
            runAsUser: 100
            readOnlyRootFilesystem: true
          resources:
            limits:
              cpu: "500m"
              memory: "256Mi"
---
apiVersion: v1
kind: Service
metadata:
  name: devsecops-svc
  labels:
    app: devsecops
spec:
  type: NodePort
  selector:
    app: devsecops
  ports:
    - port: 8080
      targetPort: 8080
      protocol: TCP
Re-running the scan: 
+ bash kubesec-scan.sh
Scan Score: 5
✅ Kubesec Scan Passed: Passed with a score of 5 points

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References

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