Policy-as-Code: Automating Compliance Enforcement

In 2026, compliance is no longer a “paper tiger.” With regulations like the Cyber Resilience Act or certifications such as ISO 27001 and TISAX, IT leaders face a daunting task: proving that security policies not only exist but are enforced seamlessly and continuously in their Kubernetes clusters.

Those relying on manual checks will fall behind. The solution is Policy-as-Code (PaC). This involves encoding organizational policies into machine-readable code, which is directly checked by the cluster gatekeeper (Admission Controller). The principle: “No deployment without a compliance check.”

Kyverno vs. OPA Gatekeeper: Two Paths to the Goal

To implement Policy-as-Code in Kubernetes, two frameworks have emerged as market leaders. Both act as gatekeepers for the K8s API, but follow different philosophies.

1. OPA Gatekeeper: The Powerful All-Rounder

The Open Policy Agent (OPA) is a CNCF veteran designed as a universal engine. It can check policies not only for Kubernetes but also for Terraform, HTTP APIs, or Linux servers.

• The Language: OPA uses Rego, a powerful but specialized query language.
• Advantage: Maximum flexibility for complex, cross-platform logic.
• Disadvantage: A steep learning curve for teams new to Rego.

2. Kyverno: The Kubernetes Native

Kyverno was specifically developed for Kubernetes administrators. Its promise: “Security without a new programming language.”

• The Language: Purely declarative YAML. Policies look like regular Kubernetes resources.
• Advantage: Kyverno can not only block resources but also mutate or automatically generate them. For example, Kyverno can automatically create a NetworkPolicy in every new namespace.

Direct Comparison: Which Solution Fits You?

Why PaC Saves Your Certification

Imagine an audit. The auditor asks: “How do you ensure no containers run with root privileges?”

• Without PaC: You show documentation and hope no mistakes were made.
• With PaC: You show your disallow-privileged-containers policy. Since it runs in Enforce mode, it’s technically impossible to deploy an insecure configuration. Compliance shifts from “desired state” to “actual state”—fully automated and verifiable at any time.

Conclusion: Security Through Automation

The choice between Kyverno and OPA Gatekeeper depends on your strategy.

• Choose Kyverno if your focus is on Kubernetes and you seek a solution that integrates seamlessly into your admins’ YAML routine.
• Choose OPA Gatekeeper if you plan a universal policy strategy across your entire tech stack.

Regardless of your choice: Policy-as-Code frees your platform teams from the role of “security police” and makes compliance a scalable part of your software supply chain.

Technical FAQ: Policy-as-Code

Do policies destroy the Developer Experience (DevEx)? Quite the opposite. Good policies provide developers with immediate feedback during kubectl apply on why a deployment was rejected. This is far more efficient than a security audit weeks later.

Can PaC also save costs? Yes! Policies can enforce, for example, that every pod must define resource limits (requests & limits) or that expensive load balancers can only be created in certain namespaces.

What is “Audit Mode”? Both tools allow policies to run in the background initially. They don’t block anything but report violations in a report. This is ideal for gradually securing existing clusters without disrupting operations.