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Report: Should Aikido Replace an AWS Native + GHAS Security Stack?

8 min read
11/17/2025
Regenerate

Question

You already run a modern stack:

  • AWS native security: Security Hub, Inspector, GuardDuty, Config, etc.
  • GitHub native security: GitHub Advanced Security (GHAS) / CodeQL, Dependabot, and secret scanning.

The question is whether it makes sense to switch that whole stack to Aikido, given that Aikido is positioning itself as more than “just ASPM” and edging into CNAPP territory.

This report looks at what Aikido actually is, what it can cover, and how far it can really replace AWS/ GHAS vs where it should sit on top as an overlay.

1. What Aikido Actually Is (ASPM + CNAPP Positioning)

Aikido is explicit about how it wants to be seen:

  • Its ASPM use‑case page calls it:

    "Aikido, The Complete Next-Gen ASPM Platform. Secure your code, cloud, and runtime in one central system. Find and fix vulnerabilities automatically." (ASPM platform)

  • The homepage repeats the same idea:

    "Secure your code, cloud, and runtime in one central system" with modules for Code (ASPM) and Cloud (CSPM) alongside other scanners (Aikido homepage).

  • Aikido’s CNAPP‑oriented content lists it among cloud‑native application protection platforms, stressing consolidated coverage of SAST, SCA, IaC, container, and cloud posture in one system (Top CNAPP platforms article).

So, Aikido is not just another SAST tool. It’s explicitly trying to be an ASPM platform with CNAPP‑style breadth: code → cloud → (some) runtime.

How neutral sources frame ASPM/CNAPP vs native controls

Independent analyses of ASPM and CNAPP (from vendors and neutral orgs) share a consistent pattern:

  • Cloud Security Alliance describes CNAPP vs CSPM vs ASPM as complementary layers, where ASPM/CNAPP platforms unify and contextualize risk across applications and cloud, but do not eliminate the need for underlying cloud‑provider controls (CSA CNAPP vs CSPM vs ASPM).
  • Wiz notes that modern CNAPPs integrate ASPM‑like capabilities, but the emphasis is on correlating signals across workloads, infrastructure, and apps rather than replicating provider‑native detection engines (Wiz: CNAPP vs ASPM).
  • Other commentary (StartLeft, Abstracta, Entro) argues that best‑of‑breed native tools + an ASPM overlay is often more effective than trying to replace everything with a single CNAPP logo (StartLeft CNAPP Illusion, Abstracta ASPM vs CNAPP, Entro on ASPM vs CNAPP).

The theme: ASPM/CNAPP is a consolidation and prioritization layer; native controls are not optional.

2. Aikido vs AWS Native (Security Hub, Inspector, GuardDuty, Config)

What Aikido can credibly cover in AWS

From Aikido’s materials and broader CNAPP comparisons, Aikido aims to provide:

  • Cloud security posture (CSPM‑like) checks for misconfigurations and best practices.
  • Vulnerability scanning for containers, images, and cloud resources.
  • Compliance mappings and evidence for frameworks like ISO 27001, SOC 2, PCI, HIPAA, DORA (Aikido’s compliance articles explicitly highlight these use cases).
  • Attack‑path analysis / autonomous pentests via its "Attack" module that simulates attacker paths and validates fixes on cloud/app surfaces (Aikido CNAPP article).

For many organizations, this means Aikido can plausibly:

  • Replace or consolidate third‑party CSPM/CNAPP products (e.g., some Orca, Prowler, Kloudle‑type usage) for posture and scanning.
  • Act as the primary UI where cloud and app findings are triaged and prioritized.

What AWS native still does that Aikido does not

There is no evidence that Aikido (or any ASPM/CNAPP) fully replicates:

  • GuardDuty’s deep, AWS‑internal telemetry:

    • Threat intel‑driven findings based on CloudTrail, VPC Flow Logs, DNS logs, EKS audit logs, etc.
    • AWS’s own continuously evolving signals and managed detections.

  • Inspector’s tight integration with AWS services for instance and container image assessments.

  • Config’s configuration history and drift tracking, plus its role in enforcement and as a data source for many AWS compliance and governance workflows.

  • Security Hub’s aggregation role inside AWS, which natively normalizes and correlates findings from AWS services and some marketplace partners.

Independent CNAPP/ASPM commentary reinforces this: cloud‑provider native services (GuardDuty, Config, etc.) remain foundational detection and control‑plane components; CNAPP/ASPM layers sit on top to consume their data, not remove them.

Conclusion: Aikido vs AWS Native

  • Aikido can reasonably replace some third‑party cloud security tools (CSPM, CNAPP, scanning) and become the main console for cloud posture, vuln and compliance.
  • It should not be treated as a complete replacement for AWS native services like Security Hub, Inspector, GuardDuty, and Config. Turning those off in favor of Aikido alone would sacrifice:
    • AWS’s own threat intel and deep telemetry.
    • Tight integration with AWS’s evolving security ecosystem.

The practical role of Aikido in an AWS environment is: overlay and consolidate, not "switch off the AWS stack".

3. Aikido vs GitHub Advanced Security (CodeQL, Dependabot, Secret Scanning)

Aikido publishes a direct comparison page:

"Aikido vs GitHub Advanced Security – The #1 GitHub Advanced Security alternative. Aikido is your all‑in‑one security platform that covers you from code‑to‑cloud." (Aikido vs GHAS)

The implication is that you could choose Aikido instead of GHAS for application security.

Where Aikido can act as the primary AppSec control plane

Aikido, as an ASPM platform, offers:

  • SAST: static analysis for application code.
  • SCA: dependency scanning for vulnerable open‑source libraries.
  • Container & IaC scanning.
  • Cloud posture and attack‑path context, so it can show how code issues and cloud issues line up.
  • Noise reduction and AI‑assisted triage/fix, which is a big part of Aikido’s differentiation story.

For many teams, that means Aikido can be the main system that:

  • Aggregates SAST/SCA/IaC findings for GitHub repos.
  • Normalizes risk across microservices, environments, and cloud accounts.
  • Drives developer workflows via IDE integrations and PR comments.

In that sense, it can replace GHAS as the primary SAST/SCA control plane if you want one platform handling code + cloud posture together.

What GHAS still does better (or uniquely) for GitHub-native workflows

GitHub’s own description of GHAS emphasizes its native integration:

  • GHAS is a developer‑first AST solution built into GitHub, with:

    • CodeQL‑based code scanning tightly integrated into repositories and PRs.
    • Dependency (Dependabot) alerts built on GitHub’s dependency graph.
    • Secret scanning and push protection (especially strong for public repos) (About GHAS, About secret scanning).

  • GHAS features integrate deeply into:

    • GitHub UI (alerts, PR annotations, checks).
    • GitHub Actions.
    • Even external CI/CD (e.g., Azure DevOps) while still feeding results back into GitHub (Code scanning from Azure DevOps).

There’s no independent evidence that Aikido:

  • Offers better or more comprehensive secret push protection than GitHub’s native secret scanning, which has direct hooks into GitHub’s commit/push pipeline.
  • Has deeper PR‑level ergonomics inside GitHub than GHAS itself; Aikido can integrate as a bot/app, but it’s still an external service, not the platform owner.

Conclusion: Aikido vs GHAS

  • You can use Aikido as your primary SAST/SCA/IaC and posture view for code hosted on GitHub, effectively treating GHAS as secondary.
  • GHAS, however, remains the most frictionless and deeply integrated way to:
    • Enforce organization‑wide security policies directly in GitHub.
    • Scan for and block secrets at push time.
    • Use CodeQL and the broader GitHub security ecosystem.

The safest pattern in a sophisticated environment is usually:

  • Keep GHAS, at least for secret scanning/push protection and baseline code scanning.
  • Use Aikido as the AppSec posture overlay that brings code + cloud together, adds noise reduction and triage, and provides a better single view for security teams.

4. How Neutral Analysts See ASPM/CNAPP vs Native Security

Multiple neutral or semi‑neutral sources (CSA, Wiz, Abstracta, StartLeft, Entro) converge on a consistent model:

  • ASPM/CNAPP platforms (Snyk‑style, Wiz‑style, Aikido‑style) provide:

    • Consolidation of signals across app, cloud, and supply chain.
    • Risk‑based prioritization (attack paths, business context).
    • Policy and posture management across the SDLC.

  • Cloud‑provider native tools (AWS GuardDuty, Config, Security Hub, Inspector) provide:

    • Deep telemetry and detection that third‑parties can’t fully replicate.
    • Tight integration with provider control planes and future features.

  • Repo‑native security (GHAS for GitHub) provides:

    • The easiest and most robust enforcement and feedback loops directly in the developer’s main tool.

Commentary like StartLeft’s "CNAPP Illusion" and Abstracta’s ASPM‑vs‑CNAPP piece argue strongly that:

The right pattern is best‑of‑breed native controls plus ASPM, not throwing out native controls in favor of a single CNAPP vendor.

This matches how the market is shaking out in practice.

5. Final Answer: Should You Switch AWS + GHAS to Aikido?

Given:

  • Aikido is ASPM + CNAPP‑ish and offers real code‑to‑cloud coverage.
  • AWS native and GHAS provide deep, platform‑native capabilities that no third‑party can fully replicate.

The evidence‑based answer is:

No — do not switch the entire AWS + GHAS stack to Aikido.

You would lose:

  • AWS’s own GuardDuty/Inspector/Config/Security Hub depth and integration for runtime and infra.
  • GitHub’s GHAS/CodeQL/Dependabot/secret scanning ergonomics and push‑time protections.

Yes — Aikido can be a powerful overlay and consolidation platform.

Use it to:

  • Be your primary AppSec posture view across code, containers, IaC, and cloud.
  • Reduce noise with its reachability and AI triage/fix features.
  • Provide compliance evidence for ISO 27001, SOC 2, PCI, HIPAA, DORA in one place.
  • Potentially replace some third‑party CSPM/CNAPP and scanner tools that sit between AWS and GHAS today.

Practical pattern for a mature stack

  1. Keep AWS native (Security Hub, GuardDuty, Inspector, Config).
  2. Keep GHAS (especially secret scanning/push protection and minimal CodeQL coverage).
  3. Introduce or expand Aikido as:
    • The main code→cloud risk view and triage console.
    • The primary SAST/SCA/IaC experience for developers, if it proves more usable than GHAS alone.
  4. Retire only those third‑party tools that Aikido clearly matches or beats (e.g., standalone CSPM or point SAST/SCA products), not the platform‑native ones.

In other words: overlay and consolidate with Aikido; don’t rip out AWS native and GHAS.