Snyk & Atlassian – Security at developer speed

Find vulnerabilities before they go into production. Directly within the developer workflow, seamlessly integrated with Jira and Bitbucket

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What is Snyk

Snyk brings security directly into developers’ day-to-day work. The platform helps teams identify and fix vulnerabilities right where software is created: in the IDE, in the CI/CD pipeline and within the daily development workflow.

Rather than, like traditional security tools, only coming into play at the end of the development cycle and generating long lists of findings, Snyk takes a ‘developer-first’ approach: risks are identified early on, prioritised sensibly and accompanied by specific recommendations for fixes – often in such a way that they can be resolved with just a few clicks.

Specifically, Snyk supports teams in four key areas:

  • Snyk Code: Static analysis of your own source code (SAST) – in real time, directly within the IDE
  • Snyk Open Source: Detection of vulnerabilities in open-source dependencies (SCA), including licence risks
  • Snyk Container: Vulnerability analysis for container images (Docker, OCI), including base image recommendations
  • Incident triggers in JSM: Critical security findings can automatically trigger incidents in Jira Service Management, enabling teams to respond immediately
  • Snyk IaC: Detection of misconfigurations in Infrastructure-as-Code (Terraform, CloudFormation, Kubernetes)

Snyk adds a specialised security layer to the Atlassian platform that is directly integrated into the developer workflow.

Smarter Together: Snyk + Atlassian

Integrating Snyk into the Atlassian platform links security findings directly to developers’ day-to-day work. Security issues don’t get left behind in separate tools, but end up where teams plan and manage their work: in Jira.

Jira integration: Findings as actionable tickets
Snyk findings are automatically created as Jira issues. Each ticket includes the severity, affected component, CVE reference and a specific fix recommendation. This enables the development team to prioritise vulnerabilities just like any other ticket, assign them and work on them during the sprint.

Bitbucket integration: Security in pull requests
. Every time a pull request is created in Bitbucket, Snyk automatically scans the code and dependencies. The results appear as inline comments directly in the pull request. This allows developers to see immediately whether a merge is safe.

Prioritisation with context
Not every vulnerability is equally critical. Snyk assesses findings based on exploit maturity, accessibility within the code and business context. This ensures that, in Jira, the issues that are truly relevant are highlighted.

Auto-Fix Pull Requests
For many vulnerabilities in open-source dependencies, Snyk automatically creates fix pull requests containing the recommended upgrade, directly in Bitbucket or GitLab. Developers simply need to review the suggestion and merge it.

Confluence reporting
: Security dashboards and trend reports can be embedded in Confluence pages. This gives stakeholders a clear overview of the current security status, whilst ensuring that audit documentation remains centrally accessible and traceable.

JSM integration for security incidents
: Critical vulnerabilities can automatically trigger JSM incidents. All relevant contextual data is included immediately, enabling the security response team to react swiftly.

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Where Snyk comes into play in the development process

Phase
Write code
Without Snyk
No real-time security alerts
With Snyk & Atlassian
Snyk Code provides feedback directly in the IDE (similar to SonarLint, but security-focused)

 
Phase
Pull Request
Without Snyk
Code review without a security context
With Snyk & Atlassian
Automatic Snyk scan with inline findings and auto-fix suggestions

 
Phase
Build & CI/CD
Without Snyk
Security scan only at the end, or not at all
With Snyk & Atlassian
Quality Gate: Build fails on critical vulnerabilities

 
Phase
Dependency update
Without Snyk
Manual checking of CVE databases
With Snyk & Atlassian
Automatic notification + fix PRs for new vulnerabilities

 
Phase
Container build
Without Snyk
Docker images without vulnerability checks
With Snyk & Atlassian
Automatic container scanning with base image recommendations

 
Phase
Release
Without Snyk
Unknown risk profile
With Snyk & Atlassian
Traceable security approval via Jira workflow

 
Phase
Production
Without Snyk
Reactive incident response
With Snyk & Atlassian
Proactive notification of newly discovered CVEs in production dependencies

 

Typical use cases

Jira workflows and Confluence reports ensure that the entire process remains traceable

Scenario 1: Shift-Left Security

Development teams identify vulnerabilities whilst writing code, rather than weeks later during a penetration test. Snyk Code analyses the code in real time, directly within the IDE. Snyk Open Source checks dependencies with every commit. Relevant findings are carried over into the sprint as prioritised Jira tickets.

Scenario 2: Open-source governance

Companies often use hundreds of open-source libraries. It is all too easy to lose track of licences and known vulnerabilities. Snyk maintains a continuous inventory of all dependencies, checks licence compatibility and alerts you to new CVEs, even for versions that have already been deployed.

Scenario 3: Container security for Kubernetes deployments

Before each deployment, Snyk Container scans Docker images for known vulnerabilities and recommends secure base images. Findings are created as Jira tickets. Critical vulnerabilities can halt the deployment process via pipeline quality gates.

Scenario 4: Compliance and Audit Readiness

Regulated organisations must demonstrate that they systematically identify and rectify vulnerabilities. Snyk provides comprehensive documentation of when a vulnerability was discovered, when it was rectified, and who reviewed the fix. The entire process remains traceable via Jira workflows and Confluence reports.

Snyk in context: how it differs and how it complements other tools

Criterion
Primary focus
Snyk
Vulnerabilities in code, dependencies, containers, IaC
SonarQube
Code quality, bugs, code smells, maintainability
Blue Flag Security
Compliance automation, policy enforcement

 
Criterion
Strength
Snyk
Developer-first UX, auto-fix, real-time feedback
SonarQube
Extensive language support, quality gates
Blue Flag Security
Governance workflows, audit readiness

 
Criterion
Typical user
Snyk
Developer, DevSecOps Engineer
SonarQube
Developer, QA Engineer
Blue Flag Security
CISO, Compliance Officer, Security Architect

 
Kriterium
Jira integration
Snyk
Findings as prioritised Jira issues with fix recommendations
SonarQube
Findings as Jira issues
Blue Flag Security
Compliance status as Jira issues

 
Criterion
Recommendation
Snyk
Complementary to SonarQube (Security) and Blue Flag (Compliance)
SonarQube
Complements Snyk (Quality)
Blue Flag Security
Complements Snyk (governance)

 

Why Communardo?

Communardo is an Atlassian Platinum Solution Partner and a Specialised Partner for Software Development

Communardo combines in-depth Atlassian expertise with practical experience in integrating security tools into existing development processes. We do not view Snyk as an isolated tool, but rather as part of an integrated DevSecOps platform in which Snyk, SonarQube, Blue Flag and Atlassian work together effectively. This creates a setup that supports developers in their day-to-day work whilst simultaneously meeting the requirements of security, governance and enterprise IT.

From selecting the right licensing to technical implementation, we provide end-to-end support from a single source. This includes consultancy and procurement of Snyk and Atlassian licences, implementation of Jira and Bitbucket integration – including workflow design – as well as managed services for day-to-day operations. Even if teams, processes or compliance requirements change, we ensure that configurations, workflows and integrations reliably adapt as your organisation grows.

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Who would benefit from Snyk + Atlassian?

Security that stays in the flow

Snyk delivers findings right where decisions about the code are made: in the IDE, in the pull request and within the existing review process. Findings do not appear as a separate security list, but as specific feedback with context, priority and a recommended fix. 

This keeps the focus on clean code, fast reviews and secure releases, without the need to switch to additional tools. Greater transparency for planning and implementation.

Greater transparency for planning and implementation

Jira makes vulnerabilities visible, assignable and measurable. Teams identify security debt within the context of a sprint, prioritise relevant risks alongside feature development, and track progress using clear workflows and metrics. This makes security a predictable part of the delivery process, rather than an unplanned escalation at the last minute before release.

Traceable from identification to resolution

This provides robust documentation for governance, reporting and audits: when a risk was identified, how it was assessed, who worked on it and when the fix was completed. 

Confluence reports and Jira data provide traceability throughout the entire process. This reduces the risk profile in the long term without slowing down development.

Licensing & Procurement

Snyk offers a range of plans to suit different team sizes and requirements:

Plan
Free
Target audience
Individual developers, open-source projects
Scope
Limited tests per month, 1 organisation, community support

 
Plan
Team
Target audience
Small development teams
Scope
Advanced testing, Jira integration, email support

 
Plan
Business
Target audience
Growing engineering organisations
Scope
All products, advanced reporting, SSO, API access

 
Plan
Enterprise
Target audience
Large enterprises, regulated sectors
Scope
Custom limits, premium support, SLA, dedicated CSM, advanced compliance features

 

Communardo’s licensing benefits

  • Independent advice on the right Snyk edition based on team size, tech stack and compliance requirements
  • Consolidated procurement: Snyk + Atlassian + SonarQube + other tools in a single contract
  • Renewal management: Proactive reminders and needs assessment before expiry
  • Implementation package: Licence + integration + workflow setup as a complete package
Request advice on Snyk licences

FAQ

Yes – Snyk and SonarQube have different areas of focus. SonarQube focuses on code quality (bugs, code smells, maintainability) and offers security rules as a supplement. Snyk specialises in vulnerability management in code, open-source dependencies, containers and IaC. The combination delivers both high code quality and comprehensive security.

Yes. Snyk integrates natively with GitLab, GitHub, Bitbucket and Azure Repos. The Jira integration works regardless of which code management tool you choose.

The basic integration (Jira + Bitbucket/GitLab) can be set up in a few hours. To optimise workflows, quality gates and reporting, we recommend a Communardo implementation package lasting 2–5 days.

Yes. Snyk also continuously monitors applications that have already been deployed. When new CVEs are published for dependencies in use, Snyk automatically creates Jira tickets – even for software that is already in production.

Penetration tests are one-off assessments carried out by external experts. Snyk offers continuous, automated security analysis throughout the entire development process. The two complement each other: Snyk for day-to-day use, and penetration tests for in-depth, contextual assessments.

Do you have any questions or would you like some advice from us?

Arrange a personal, no-obligation consultation with our Atlassian Sales Experts.

Marlen Kaiser, Team Leader Customer Acquisition bei Communardo Software GmbH

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Marlen Kaiser
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