grype-scanning

Overview

Per github.com/anchore/grype (opens in new window):

Grype is the Anchore vuln scanner that pairs with syft-generation. Three input modes:

The SBOM-input mode is the recommended pattern for production: generate the SBOM once via Syft, attest via cosign, then scan the SBOM via Grype. Decoupling the two steps gives audit trail

• allows re-scanning with refreshed vuln DB without re-building.

Per gr-gh (opens in new window) coverage:

"Supports major OS package ecosystems (Alpine, Debian, Ubuntu, RHEL, Amazon Linux, etc.). Covers language-specific packages (Ruby, Java, JavaScript, Python, .NET, Go, PHP, Rust). Supports Docker, OCI, and Singularity image formats."

When to use

• The team uses Syft for SBOM generation + needs paired vuln scanning.
• Container-image vuln scanning where Trivy isn't already in place.
• Language-package vuln coverage layered with osv-scanner
  • snyk-test (in the qa-sca plugin) for cross-DB consensus.
• OpenVEX-based finding filtering (status assertions like "not affected" / "fixed" / "under-investigation" filter scan output).

How to use

1. Install Grype (Step 1).
2. Generate an SBOM once with Syft, then scan the SBOM: grype sbom:./sbom.json - deterministic + auditable (Step 2).
3. Pick the output format for the consumer: -o sarif for GitHub Code Scanning, -o json for prioritization (Step 3).
4. Gate CI with --fail-on high; add --only-fixed to focus on actionable findings (Step 4).
5. Triage false positives into .grype.yaml ignore rules, each with a mandatory expires: date + reachability reason (Step 5).
6. Pin the vuln DB for CI determinism (grype db import ...) (Step 6).
7. Wire anchore/scan-action + SARIF upload into the pipeline (Step 7).

Step 1 - Install

Per gr-gh (opens in new window):

curl -sSfL https://get.anchore.io/grype | sudo sh -s -- -b /usr/local/bin

Other install paths (verify against gr-gh (opens in new window)): brew install grype; Docker image anchore/grype.

Step 2 - Basic scans

Per gr-gh (opens in new window):

# Container image (Grype generates internal SBOM)
grype alpine:latest

# Directory
grype ./my-project

# SBOM input (recommended for audit trail)
grype sbom:./sbom.json

# Pipe-in pattern
cat ./sbom.json | grype

The SBOM-input mode skips re-generation; the scan output is deterministic given the same SBOM + vuln DB version.

Step 3 - Output formats

Per gr-gh (opens in new window): "support for multiple output formats (table, json, cyclonedx, sarif, template)".

Verify exact CLI flag against current Grype release; typical:

grype my-image:1.0 -o table          # default human-readable
grype my-image:1.0 -o json           # JSON for vuln prioritization
grype my-image:1.0 -o sarif          # SARIF for GitHub Code Scanning
grype my-image:1.0 -o cyclonedx-json # CycloneDX with vuln annotations
grype my-image:1.0 -o template -t my-template.tmpl   # custom Go template

Per gr-gh (opens in new window): includes "threat prioritization with EPSS, KEV, and risk scoring" - the JSON output annotates each finding with these signals for downstream prioritization.

Step 4 - Severity filtering + fail-on

Per gr-gh (opens in new window):

# Filter to HIGH+CRITICAL only
grype my-image --fail-on high

# Common severity levels: critical, high, medium, low, negligible, unknown

--fail-on controls CI exit code - exit 1 if any finding meets or exceeds the severity. Pair with --only-fixed to focus on upgradable findings:

grype my-image --fail-on high --only-fixed

Step 5 - Suppression + false-positive triage (MANDATORY)

Grype's native suppression path is .grype.yaml ignore rules - per-CVE, per-package+version, or pattern-based (fix-state), each carrying a mandatory expires: date and a reachability reason:. The full .grype.yaml example config and the required justification template are in references/grype-ignore-rules.md.

Suppression mechanisms (per gr-gh (opens in new window) + standard practice):

OpenVEX is a particularly clean way to manage findings - the VEX document is signed + persistent + machine-readable; consumers can verify supply-chain assertions about vulnerability status.

Cadence: every quarter, audit .grype.yaml ignore entries; expired re-review-date entries removed.

Step 6 - DB management

Grype's vuln DB updates frequently (multiple times per day):

# Manually refresh DB
grype db update

# Show DB status
grype db status

# Use a specific cached DB version (CI determinism)
grype db import grype-db-v6-2026-05-06.tar.gz

For CI determinism, pin DB version per scan; otherwise Grype pulls the latest.

Step 7 - CI integration

jobs:
  grype:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v5
      - uses: actions/download-artifact@v4
        with: { name: sboms }
      - uses: anchore/scan-action@v5
        with:
          sbom: sbom.cyclonedx.json
          fail-build: true
          severity-cutoff: high
          output-format: sarif
      - uses: github/codeql-action/upload-sarif@v3
        if: always()
        with: { sarif_file: results.sarif }

The anchore/scan-action GHA wraps Grype + handles SARIF upload.

Step 8 - Composition with sister tools

Worked example

A CI job scans a previously generated SBOM and gates on HIGH:

1. grype sbom:./sbom.cyclonedx.json --fail-on high --only-fixed returns exit 1 - one HIGH finding, CVE-2024-1234 on lodash@4.17.20, has an available fix.
2. Reachability analysis shows the vulnerable function is only used by test fixtures, not production paths. The team adds a per-package ignore to .grype.yaml with reason:, approved-by:, and expires: 2026-09-15 (see references/grype-ignore-rules.md).
3. Re-running grype sbom:./sbom.cyclonedx.json --fail-on high now exits 0 - the triaged finding is suppressed until the expiry.
4. The pipeline also emits -o sarif and uploads it via github/codeql-action/upload-sarif so the finding history stays visible in GitHub Code Scanning.

Result: the build passes with one documented, time-boxed suppression and a SARIF audit trail, instead of a blanket severity downgrade.

Anti-patterns

Limitations

• Grype's DB is Anchore-curated; coverage differs from OSV.dev, Snyk, NVD; pair with another scanner for consensus.
• Container-only secret scanning is limited; use trivy-image
  • gitleaks-scanning (in the qa-secrets plugin) for that.
• License-detection support is basic; for compliance, pair with ScanCode / FOSSology.
• Reachability analysis NOT included - every CVE on a declared component counts.

References

• gr-gh (opens in new window) - repository, install, basic commands
• references/grype-ignore-rules.md - .grype.yaml config + justification template
• oss.anchore.com/docs/reference/grype/cli/ - full CLI reference
• openvex.dev - OpenVEX specification
• first.org/epss - EPSS data source for prioritization
• syft-generation, cyclonedx-format, spdx-format, trivy-image - sister tools