Implement Dependabot for Automated Dependency Management

[peanutenthusiast]

Issue Description We need to implement Dependabot to automatically manage and update our project dependencies, ensuring security vulnerabilities are addressed promptly and dependencies stay current. This will help maintain the security posture of our climate action platform while reducing manual maintenance overhead.

Why This Matters Dependabot provides automated security updates for vulnerable dependencies and can help prevent supply chain attacks by keeping our npm packages up-to-date . For JavaScript projects like ours, Dependabot can now address security vulnerabilities in transitive dependencies through npm integration, significantly improving our security coverage .

Implementation Tasks 1. Enable Dependabot Security Updates

Navigate to repository Settings → Code security and analysis Enable "Dependabot alerts" and "Dependabot security updates" Configure Dependabot to work with GitHub Actions runners for our CI/CD pipeline 2. Create Dependabot Configuration File Create .github/dependabot.yml with the following configuration:

Copy version: 2 updates:

Frontend dependencies (package.json in root)

• package-ecosystem: "npm" directory: "/" schedule: interval: "weekly" day: "monday" time: "09:00" open-pull-requests-limit: 10 reviewers:
  • "@OpenSourceFellows/maintainers" assignees:
  • "@OpenSourceFellows/maintainers" commit-message: prefix: "deps" include: "scope"

Backend dependencies (if separate package.json exists)

• package-ecosystem: "npm" directory: "/backend" schedule: interval: "weekly" day: "monday" time: "09:00" open-pull-requests-limit: 5 3. Configure Advanced Settings Implement grouping for related updates to reduce PR noise and enable multi-ecosystem updates for better dependency management . This helps consolidate related dependency updates into single pull requests, making review processes more efficient .

4. Integration with CI/CD Ensure Dependabot PRs trigger our existing GitHub Actions workflows for testing and validation. Configure automated merging for low-risk security updates while requiring manual review for major version updates .

Expected Benefits Automated security vulnerability patching Reduced manual dependency maintenance Improved supply chain security Better visibility into dependency health Integration with existing CI/CD workflows Acceptance Criteria Dependabot alerts enabled in repository settings .github/dependabot.yml configuration file created Security updates automatically create PRs Weekly dependency update PRs generated Integration with existing GitHub Actions workflows verified Team notifications configured for critical security updates Priority High - Security and dependency management are critical for maintaining a secure platform for climate action initiatives.

This configuration will provide comprehensive automated dependency management while integrating seamlessly with your existing development workflow and security practices.

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