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Part C: Security and Governance

Building on the technical platform capabilities from Part B, we now address the critical concerns that protect organisations and ensure Architecture as Code practices align with regulatory expectations and internal policies.

Security cannot be an afterthought in Architecture as Code. The automation and velocity enabled by CI/CD pipelines and containerised deployments demand security controls that are equally automated and integrated into every stage of the delivery lifecycle. This part explores how security principles, policy enforcement, and governance structures become executable code rather than static documents.

Modern organisations face increasingly complex regulatory landscapes. GDPR, industry-specific compliance requirements, and data sovereignty obligations must be validated continuously and automatically. Policy as Code frameworks transform these requirements from manual checklists into enforceable guardrails that prevent violations before they reach production.

Governance as Code extends these principles to organisational processes, approval workflows, and decision-making structures. By codifying governance, organisations gain transparency, consistency, and audit trails that satisfy both internal stakeholders and external regulators.

What you will learn in this part:

  • Security-by-design principles for Architecture as Code implementations
  • Zero Trust Architecture patterns and threat modelling in automated environments
  • Policy as Code using tools like Open Policy Agent and HashiCorp Sentinel
  • Governance frameworks that balance autonomy with control
  • Compliance automation for GDPR, financial regulations, and sector-specific requirements
  • Continuous compliance monitoring and evidence generation

The practices in this part build upon the fundamental principles of immutability and testability whilst leveraging the automation capabilities established earlier. The testing and operational practices that follow depend on these security and governance foundations to ensure safe, compliant delivery.