OpenTaint vs Semgrep vs CodeQL: Where SAST Tools Lose the Dataflow

The article compares Semgrep, CodeQL, and OpenTaint across five increasingly complex XSS scenarios in a Java Spring application. It argues that Semgrep struggles once analysis crosses function boundaries, CodeQL weakens on deep object graphs and virtual dispatch, while OpenTaint maintains taint tracking through builders, constructor chains, and interface calls using Semgrep-style rules interpreted semantically rather than syntactically. The piece frames the core challenge of SAST as preserving dataflow visibility as software architecture accumulates abstraction layers.

https://opentaint.org/blog/semgrep-vs-codeql-vs-opentaint/

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