Set up Slack notifications for detected issues in STO

Set up Slack notifications based on severity levels

This topic describes how to generate Slack notifications for STO-related events such as:

• A scan detected new vulnerabilities.

• A scan detected critical- or high-severity vulnerabilities.

• A scan step failed because it crossed my Fail on Severity threshold or violated one or more of my OPA policies.

To set up Slack notifications, you add a simple script to your pipeline that does the following:

1. Determines whether to send a notification.

2. Creates a string variable with your notification content.

3. Posts the notification to your Slack webhook.

Before you begin

1. Add an incoming webhook to your Slack app.

2. Run a cURL command to verify that you can post notifications to the webhook.

   For information about these steps, go to Sending messages using incoming webhooks in the Slack documentation.

3. Create a Harness secret for your webhook URL.

Add the script to your pipeline

1. In your scan stage, add a Run step after the scan step.

2. Set the shell type. This example workflow uses Bash.

3. If you want to send a Slack when the scan step fails, add a failure strategy to ignore the failure for all errors.

   

   Send a Slack when the scan step fails
4. Set up your script as follows.

Add variables for your pipeline and scan results

This is optional but can make your script easier to understand and update.

Here's an example:

pipeline_url="YOUR_HARNESS_PIPELINE_URL"
new_critical="<+pipeline.stages.YOUR_SCAN_STAGE.spec.execution.steps.YOUR_SCAN_STEP.output.outputVariables.NEW_CRITICAL>"
new_high="<+pipeline.stages.YOUR_SCAN_STAGE.spec.execution.steps.YOUR_SCAN_STEP.output.outputVariables.NEW_HIGH>"

To get the full expression for an output variable:

• Go to the Pipeline Execution page for a previous run of your STO pipeline.

• Navigate to Pipeline > scan_stage_id > Output.

• Hover next to the variable name to access Click to Copy.

  

  Add shared path for scan results

Send the notification?

If you want to send notifications based on your scan results, check the output variables from the previous scan step. If all the variables you're interested in are zero, there's no need to send a notification.

issues_total=$(( $new_critical + $new_high))
if [ "$issues_total" == "0" ]; then
  exit 0
fi

Generate the notification content

Create a string variable for your notification content. Include the pipeline URL, the scan output, and any other relevant information. For example:

slack_msg="=======================================================  \n"
slack_msg="$slack_msg WARNING: New vulnerabilities detected with severity CRITICAL or HIGH. \n"
slack_msg="$slack_msg $pipeline_url \n"
slack_msg="$slack_msg - NEW_CRITICAL issues: \t $new_critical \n"
slack_msg="$slack_msg - NEW_HIGH issues: \t = $new_high \n"
slack_msg="$slack_msg =======================================================  \n"

Post the notification

Add a cURL command to post the notification to your Slack webhook. In this example, $slack_hook is the Harness secret for the Slack webhook URL.

curl -X POST --data-urlencode "payload={
  \"channel\": \"YOUR_SLACK_CHANNEL\",
  \"username\": \"YOUR_SLACK_USERNAME\",
  \"type\": \"mrkdwn\",
  \"text\": \"$slack_msg \",
  \"icon_emoji\": \":harnesshd:\"
}" <+secrets.getValue("YOUR_SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL_SECRET")>

Script and pipeline examples for STO Slack notifications

Notify on scan results

This pipeline does the following:

1. Runs a Trivy scan on a container image.

2. Sends a Slack notification if the scan results include any CRITICAL, HIGH, NEW_CRITICAL, or NEW_HIGH vulnerabilities.

Add shared path for scan results

Full script - Try it yourself

To add this script to an existing pipeline:

1. Do the steps in Before you begin.

2. Add the script to your pipeline.

3. Update the following placeholders:

   • FULL_EXPRESSION_OUTPUT_VARIABLE_NEW_CRITICAL

   • FULL_EXPRESSION_OUTPUT_VARIABLE_NEW_HIGH

     You can copy and paste these expressions from a previous pipeline execution.

   • YOUR_HARNESS_PIPELINE_URL

   • YOUR_SLACK_CHANNEL

   • YOUR_SLACK_USERNAME

   • YOUR_SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL_SECRET

4. Save and run the pipeline.

# 1. Create your variables. <a href="#1-create-your-variables" id="1-create-your-variables"></a>
# ------------------------------------------------------- <a href="#" id=""></a>
new_critical="FULL_EXPRESSION_OUTPUT_VARIABLE_NEW_CRITICAL"
new_high="FULL_EXPRESSION_OUTPUT_VARIABLE_NEW_HIGH"
pipeline_url="YOUR_HARNESS_PIPELINE_URL"

# 2. If all the variables == 0, exit. <a href="#2-if-all-the-variables-0-exit" id="2-if-all-the-variables-0-exit"></a>
# ------------------------------------------------------- <a href="#" id=""></a>
# Get the total # of issues. If the total is 0, exit without sending a notification <a href="#get-the-total-of-issues-if-the-total-is-0-exit-without-sending-a-notification" id="get-the-total-of-issues-if-the-total-is-0-exit-without-sending-a-notification"></a>
issues_total=$(($new_critical + $new_high))
echo "issues_total = $issues_total"
if [ "$issues_total" == "0" ]; then
  exit 0
fi

# 3. Create your notification content. <a href="#3-create-your-notification-content" id="3-create-your-notification-content"></a>
# --------------------------------------------------------- <a href="#" id=""></a>
slack_msg="=======================================================  \n"
slack_msg="$slack_msg WARNING: New issues detected with severity CRITICAL or HIGH. \n"
slack_msg="$slack_msg $pipeline_url \n"
slack_msg="$slack_msg - NEW_CRITICAL issues: \t $new_critical \n"
slack_msg="$slack_msg - NEW_HIGH issues: \t = $new_high \n"
slack_msg="$slack_msg =======================================================  \n"

echo "SLACK MESSAGE: \N $slack_msg"

# 4. POST the notification. <a href="#4-post-the-notification" id="4-post-the-notification"></a>
# --------------------------------------------------------- <a href="#" id=""></a>
curl -X POST --data-urlencode "payload={
  \"channel\": \"YOUR_SLACK_CHANNEL\",
  \"username\": \"YOUR_SLACK_CHANNEL\",
  \"type\": \"mrkdwn\",
  \"text\": \" $slack_msg \",
  \"icon_emoji\": \":harnesshd:\"
}" <+secrets.getValue("YOUR_SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL_SECRET")>

YAML pipeline - Try it yourself

To run this pipeline yourself:

1. Do the steps in Before you begin.

2. Create a new Harness pipeline.

3. Select the YAML view and copy/paste the YAML pipeline below.

4. Update the following placeholders:

   • YOUR_HARNESS_PIPELINE_URL

   • YOUR_SLACK_CHANNEL

   • YOUR_SLACK_USERNAME

   • YOUR_SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL_SECRET

5. Save and run the pipeline.

pipeline:
  identifier: slack_on_output_vars
  name: slack_on_output_vars
  projectIdentifier: default
  orgIdentifier: default
  tags: {}
  stages:
    - stage:
        name: container_scan_stage
        identifier: container_scan_stage
        description: ""
        type: CI
        spec:
          cloneCodebase: false
          platform:
            os: Linux
            arch: Amd64
          runtime:
            type: Cloud
            spec: {}
          execution:
            steps:
              - step:
                  type: AquaTrivy
                  name: run_trivy_scan
                  identifier: run_trivy_scan
                  spec:
                    mode: orchestration
                    config: default
                    target:
                      type: container
                      detection: auto
                    advanced:
                      log:
                        level: info
                      fail_on_severity: none
                    privileged: true
                    image:
                      type: docker_v2
                      name: <+input>
                      tag: <+input>
              - step:
                  type: Run
                  name: send_slack_on_output_vars
                  identifier: send_slack_on_output_vars
                  spec:
                    shell: Sh
                    command: |
                      
                      # 1. Create your variables.
                      # -------------------------------------------------------
                      critical="<+pipeline.stages.container_scan_stage.spec.execution.steps.run_trivy_scan.output.outputVariables.CRITICAL>"
                      high="<+pipeline.stages.container_scan_stage.spec.execution.steps.run_trivy_scan.output.outputVariables.HIGH>"
                      new_critical="<+pipeline.stages.container_scan_stage.spec.execution.steps.run_trivy_scan.output.outputVariables.NEW_CRITICAL>"
                      new_high="<+pipeline.stages.container_scan_stage.spec.execution.steps.run_trivy_scan.output.outputVariables.NEW_HIGH>"
                      pipeline_url="YOUR_HARNESS_PIPELINE_URL"

                      # 2. If all the variables == 0, exit.
                      # -------------------------------------------------------
                      # Get the total # of issues. If the total is 0, exit without sending a notification
                      issues_total=$(($critical + $new_critical + $high + $new_high))
                      echo "issues_total = $issues_total"
                      if [ "$issues_total" == "0" ]; then
                        exit 0
                      fi

                      # 3. Create your notification content. 
                      # ---------------------------------------------------------
                      slack_msg="=======================================================  \n"
                      slack_msg="$slack_msg WARNING: Issues detected with severity CRITICAL or HIGH. \n"
                      slack_msg="$slack_msg $pipeline_url \n"
                      slack_msg="$slack_msg - CRITICAL issues: \t $critical \n"
                      slack_msg="$slack_msg - NEW_CRITICAL issues: \t $new_critical \n"
                      slack_msg="$slack_msg - HIGH issues: \t = $high \n"
                      slack_msg="$slack_msg - NEW_HIGH issues: \t = $new_high \n"
                      slack_msg="$slack_msg =======================================================  \n"

                      echo "SLACK MESSAGE: \N $slack_msg"

                      # 4. POST the notification. 
                      # ---------------------------------------------------------
                      curl -X POST --data-urlencode "payload={
                        \"channel\": \"YOUR_SLACK_CHANNEL\",
                        \"username\": \"YOUR_SLACK_USERNAME\",
                        \"type\": \"mrkdwn\",
                        \"text\": \" $slack_msg \",
                        \"icon_emoji\": \":harnesshd:\"
                      }" <+secrets.getValue("YOUR_SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL_SECRET")>
          caching:
            enabled: false
            paths: []

Notify when the scan step fails

This pipeline does the following:

1. Runs a Trivy scan on a container image.

2. Sends a Slack notification if the scan step fails — for example, if it exceeds the Fail on Severity threshold or violates an OPA policy.

Add shared path for scan results

Full script - Try it yourself

To add this script to an existing pipeline:

1. Do the steps in Before you begin.

2. Add the script to your pipeline.

3. Update the following placeholders:

   • FULL_EXPRESSION_OUTPUT_VARIABLE_CRITICAL

   • FULL_EXPRESSION_OUTPUT_VARIABLE_HIGH

   • FULL_EXPRESSION_OUTPUT_VARIABLE_NEW_CRITICAL

   • FULL_EXPRESSION_OUTPUT_VARIABLE_NEW_HIGH

     You can copy and paste these expressions from a previous pipeline execution.

   • YOUR_HARNESS_PIPELINE_URL

   • YOUR_SLACK_CHANNEL

   • YOUR_SLACK_USERNAME

   • YOUR_SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL_SECRET

4. Save and run the pipeline.

# 1. Create your variables. <a href="#1-create-your-variables" id="1-create-your-variables"></a>
# ------------------------------------------------------- <a href="#" id=""></a>
critical="FULL_EXPRESSION_OUTPUT_VARIABLE_NEW_CRITICAL"
high="FULL_EXPRESSION_OUTPUT_VARIABLE_HIGH"
new_critical="FULL_EXPRESSION_OUTPUT_VARIABLE_NEW_CRITICAL"
new_high="FULL_EXPRESSION_OUTPUT_VARIABLE_NEW_HIGH"
pipeline_url="YOUR_HARNESS_PIPELINE_URL"


# 2. Generate the output message. <a href="#2-generate-the-output-message" id="2-generate-the-output-message"></a>
# ------------------------------------------------------- <a href="#" id=""></a>
slack_msg="=======================================================  \n"
slack_msg="$slack_msg ERROR: Scan step failed. \n"
slack_msg="$slack_msg $pipeline_url \n"
slack_msg="$slack_msg - CRITICAL issues: \t $critical \n"
slack_msg="$slack_msg - NEW_CRITICAL issues: \t $new_critical \n"
slack_msg="$slack_msg - HIGH issues: \t = $high \n"
slack_msg="$slack_msg - NEW_HIGH issues: \t = $new_high \n"
slack_msg="$slack_msg =======================================================  \n"


# 3. POST the notification. <a href="#3-post-the-notification" id="3-post-the-notification"></a>
# --------------------------------------------------------- <a href="#" id=""></a>
curl -X POST --data-urlencode "payload={
  \"channel\": \"YOUR_SLACK_CHANNEL\",
  \"username\": \"YOUR_SLACK_CHANNEL\",
  \"type\": \"mrkdwn\",
  \"text\": \" $slack_msg \",
  \"icon_emoji\": \":harnesshd:\"
}" <+secrets.getValue("YOUR_SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL_SECRET")>

YAML pipeline - Try it yourself

To run this pipeline yourself:

1. Do the steps in Before you begin.

2. Create a new Harness pipeline.

3. Select the YAML view and copy/paste the YAML pipeline below.

4. Update the following placeholders:

   • YOUR_HARNESS_PIPELINE_URL

   • YOUR_SLACK_CHANNEL

   • YOUR_SLACK_USERNAME

   • YOUR_SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL_SECRET

5. Save and run the pipeline.

pipeline:
  identifier: slack_on_scan_failed_test_1
  name: slack_on_scan_failed_test_1
  projectIdentifier: default
  orgIdentifier: default
  tags: {}
  stages:
    - stage:
        name: container_scan_stage
        identifier: container_scan_stage
        description: ""
        type: CI
        spec:
          cloneCodebase: false
          platform:
            os: Linux
            arch: Amd64
          runtime:
            type: Cloud
            spec: {}
          execution:
            steps:
              - step:
                  type: AquaTrivy
                  name: trivy_scan_step
                  identifier: trivy_scan_step
                  spec:
                    mode: orchestration
                    config: default
                    target:
                      type: container
                      detection: auto
                    advanced:
                      log:
                        level: info
                      fail_on_severity: medium
                    privileged: true
                    image:
                      type: docker_v2
                      name: <+input>
                      tag: <+input>
              - step:
                  type: Run
                  name: send_slack_on_scan_failed
                  identifier: send_slack_on_scan_failed
                  spec:
                    shell: Bash
                    command: |
                      
                      # 1. Create your variables.
                      # -------------------------------------------------------
                      critical="<+pipeline.stages.container_scan_stage.spec.execution.steps.trivy_scan_step.output.outputVariables.CRITICAL>"
                      high="<+pipeline.stages.container_scan_stage.spec.execution.steps.trivy_scan_step.output.outputVariables.HIGH>"
                      new_critical="<+pipeline.stages.container_scan_stage.spec.execution.steps.trivy_scan_step.output.outputVariables.NEW_CRITICAL>"
                      new_high="<+pipeline.stages.container_scan_stage.spec.execution.steps.trivy_scan_step.output.outputVariables.NEW_HIGH>"
                      pipeline_url="YOUR_HARNESS_PIPELINE_URL"

                      
                      # 2. Generate the output message.
                      # -------------------------------------------------------
                      slack_msg="=======================================================  \n"
                      slack_msg="$slack_msg ERROR: Scan step failed. \n"
                      slack_msg="$slack_msg $pipeline_url \n"
                      slack_msg="$slack_msg - CRITICAL issues: \t $critical \n"
                      slack_msg="$slack_msg - NEW_CRITICAL issues: \t $new_critical \n"
                      slack_msg="$slack_msg - HIGH issues: \t = $high \n"
                      slack_msg="$slack_msg - NEW_HIGH issues: \t = $new_high \n"
                      slack_msg="$slack_msg =======================================================  \n"



                      # 3. POST the Slack notification.
                      # -------------------------------------------------------
                      curl -X POST --data-urlencode "payload={
                        \"channel\": \"YOUR_SLACK_CHANNEL\",
                        \"username\": \"YOUR_SLACK_USERNAME\",
                        \"type\": \"mrkdwn\",
                        \"text\": \" $slack_msg \",
                        \"icon_emoji\": \":harnesshd:\"
                      }" <+secrets.getValue("YOUR_SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL_SECRET")>
                  failureStrategies:
                    - onFailure:
                        errors:
                          - AllErrors
                        action:
                          type: Ignore
                  when:
                    stageStatus: Failure
          caching:
            enabled: false
            paths: []
    - stage:
        name: echo_on_previous_stage_not_failing
        identifier: echo_on_previous_stage_not_failing
        description: ""
        type: Custom
        spec:
          execution:
            steps:
              - step:
                  type: ShellScript
                  name: echo_msg
                  identifier: echo_msg
                  spec:
                    shell: Bash
                    executionTarget: {}
                    source:
                      type: Inline
                      spec:
                        script: echo "Hello, you will only see this if the previous stage didn't fail."
                    environmentVariables: []
                    outputVariables: []
                  timeout: 10m
        tags: {}