diff --git a/.github/workflows/BETA-xray-cucumber-integration.yaml b/.github/workflows/BETA-xray-cucumber-integration.yaml
index b072dc37da..f99f639906 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/BETA-xray-cucumber-integration.yaml
+++ b/.github/workflows/BETA-xray-cucumber-integration.yaml
@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@ jobs:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
 
     steps:
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
       - name: Set up JDK 17
         uses: actions/setup-java@v3
diff --git a/.github/workflows/codeql.yml b/.github/workflows/codeql.yml
index f3cdc69b3f..f4e2d93b56 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/codeql.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/codeql.yml
@@ -49,7 +49,7 @@ jobs:
 
     steps:
       - name: Checkout repository
-        uses: actions/checkout@v3
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
       - name: Set up JDK 17
         uses: actions/setup-java@v3
diff --git a/.github/workflows/eclipse-dash.yml b/.github/workflows/eclipse-dash.yml
index 0555c7827a..efb978f182 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/eclipse-dash.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/eclipse-dash.yml
@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ jobs:
   build:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     steps:
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
       - name: Set up JDK 17
         uses: actions/setup-java@v3
diff --git a/.github/workflows/helm-chart-release.yaml b/.github/workflows/helm-chart-release.yaml
index 5c50ac9186..9afdf5887d 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/helm-chart-release.yaml
+++ b/.github/workflows/helm-chart-release.yaml
@@ -18,7 +18,7 @@ jobs:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     steps:
       - name: Checkout
-        uses: actions/checkout@v3
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
         with:
           fetch-depth: 0
 
@@ -45,7 +45,7 @@ jobs:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     steps:
       - name: Checkout
-        uses: actions/checkout@v3
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
         with:
           fetch-depth: 0
 
diff --git a/.github/workflows/helm-test.yaml b/.github/workflows/helm-test.yaml
index 74e71b1924..a954977931 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/helm-test.yaml
+++ b/.github/workflows/helm-test.yaml
@@ -24,7 +24,7 @@ jobs:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     steps:
       - name: Checkout
-        uses: actions/checkout@v3
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
         with:
           fetch-depth: 0
 
@@ -35,7 +35,7 @@ jobs:
           version: v0.20.0
 
       - name: Build image
-        uses: docker/build-push-action@v4
+        uses: docker/build-push-action@v5
         with:
           context: .
           push: true
diff --git a/.github/workflows/helm-upgrade.yaml b/.github/workflows/helm-upgrade.yaml
index a0900f0878..762675e705 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/helm-upgrade.yaml
+++ b/.github/workflows/helm-upgrade.yaml
@@ -11,7 +11,7 @@ jobs:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     steps:
       - name: Checkout
-        uses: actions/checkout@v3
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
         with:
           fetch-depth: 0
 
diff --git a/.github/workflows/int-setup-testdata.yml b/.github/workflows/int-setup-testdata.yml
index 12629d14e2..fc11f6c2c8 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/int-setup-testdata.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/int-setup-testdata.yml
@@ -32,7 +32,7 @@ jobs:
   build:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     steps:
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
       - name: setup python
         uses: actions/setup-python@v4
diff --git a/.github/workflows/int-test-automation.yml b/.github/workflows/int-test-automation.yml
index e505dd2c77..aa19f1981c 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/int-test-automation.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/int-test-automation.yml
@@ -13,7 +13,7 @@ jobs:
   build:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     steps:
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
         with:
           fetch-depth: 0  # Shallow clones should be disabled for a better relevancy of sonar analysis
 
diff --git a/.github/workflows/irs-build.yml b/.github/workflows/irs-build.yml
index 0918fae1a3..eaeeb9c54d 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/irs-build.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/irs-build.yml
@@ -23,7 +23,7 @@ jobs:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     steps:
       - name: Checkout repository
-        uses: actions/checkout@v3
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
       - name: Set up JDK 17
         uses: actions/setup-java@v3
@@ -49,7 +49,7 @@ jobs:
       github.actor != 'dependabot[bot]'
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     steps:
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
         with:
           fetch-depth: 0  # Shallow clones should be disabled for a better relevancy of sonar analysis
 
@@ -91,7 +91,7 @@ jobs:
     outputs:
       image-tag: ${{ steps.version.outputs.image_tag }}
     steps:
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
       - name: Build image to make sure Dockerfile is valid
         run: |
@@ -146,7 +146,7 @@ jobs:
         env:
           DOCKER_HUB_USER: ${{ secrets.DOCKER_HUB_USER }}
         if: env.DOCKER_HUB_USER != ''
-        uses: docker/login-action@v2
+        uses: docker/login-action@v3
         with:
           username: ${{ secrets.DOCKER_HUB_USER }}
           password: ${{ secrets.DOCKER_HUB_TOKEN }}
diff --git a/.github/workflows/irs-load-test.yaml b/.github/workflows/irs-load-test.yaml
index cd7ff73ba8..e6e931fc80 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/irs-load-test.yaml
+++ b/.github/workflows/irs-load-test.yaml
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@ jobs:
   gatling-test:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     steps:
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
       - name: Set up JDK 17
         uses: actions/setup-java@v3
diff --git a/.github/workflows/jira-publish-release.yaml b/.github/workflows/jira-publish-release.yaml
index 8ddc5270ff..dc442b3705 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/jira-publish-release.yaml
+++ b/.github/workflows/jira-publish-release.yaml
@@ -18,7 +18,7 @@ jobs:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
 
     steps:
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
       - name: Set current date as env variable
         run: echo "NOW=$(date +'%Y-%m-%d')" >> $GITHUB_ENV
diff --git a/.github/workflows/kics.yml b/.github/workflows/kics.yml
index 2979b13336..c5b7f68da9 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/kics.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/kics.yml
@@ -24,7 +24,7 @@ jobs:
       security-events: write
 
     steps:
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
       - name: KICS scan
         uses: checkmarx/kics-github-action@master
@@ -53,6 +53,8 @@ jobs:
           # Exclude accepted queries from the build
           # Exclude 8d29754a-2a18-460d-a1ba-9509f8d359da - IAM Access Analyzer Not Enabled. This is a false positive for AWS configs which are not used
           exclude_queries: "8d29754a-2a18-460d-a1ba-9509f8d359da"
+          # No secret scanning
+          disable_secrets: true
 
       # Upload findings to GitHub Advanced Security Dashboard
       - name: Upload SARIF file for GitHub Advanced Security Dashboard
@@ -66,4 +68,4 @@ jobs:
         if: always()
         with:
           name: kicsResults.json
-          path: kicsResults/results.json
\ No newline at end of file
+          path: kicsResults/results.json
diff --git a/.github/workflows/maven-deploy.yaml b/.github/workflows/maven-deploy.yaml
index f59070333c..1ad049cf89 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/maven-deploy.yaml
+++ b/.github/workflows/maven-deploy.yaml
@@ -40,7 +40,7 @@ jobs:
       needs.secret-presence.outputs.HAS_OSSRH && github.event_name != 'pull_request' && github.ref != 'refs/heads/releases'
     steps:
       - name: Checkout repository
-        uses: actions/checkout@v3
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
       - name: Set up JDK 17
         uses: actions/setup-java@v3
diff --git a/.github/workflows/owasp.yml b/.github/workflows/owasp.yml
index e3553280ec..d783444d88 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/owasp.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/owasp.yml
@@ -24,7 +24,7 @@ jobs:
 
     name: owasp-check
     steps:
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
       - name: Set up JDK 17
         uses: actions/setup-java@v3
diff --git a/.github/workflows/publish-documentation.yaml b/.github/workflows/publish-documentation.yaml
index 0623173695..de2086ef85 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/publish-documentation.yaml
+++ b/.github/workflows/publish-documentation.yaml
@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ jobs:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     steps:
       - name: Checkout
-        uses: actions/checkout@v3
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
         with:
           fetch-depth: 0
 
diff --git a/.github/workflows/release.yaml b/.github/workflows/release.yaml
index 2751b16a75..8ac4ed5861 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/release.yaml
+++ b/.github/workflows/release.yaml
@@ -10,18 +10,18 @@ jobs:
   release:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     steps:
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
       - name: Calculate Helm release version from CHANGELOG
         run: echo HELM_VERSION=$(cat charts/irs-helm/CHANGELOG.md | sed -n 's/.*\[\([0-9]\+\.[0-9]\+\.[0-9]\+\)\].*/\1/p' | head -n 1) >> $GITHUB_ENV
 
       - name: Update Chart.yaml appVersion
-        uses: mikefarah/yq@v4.34.2
+        uses: mikefarah/yq@v4.35.2
         with:
           cmd: yq -i eval '.appVersion = "${{ github.ref_name }}"' charts/irs-helm/Chart.yaml
 
       - name: Update Chart.yaml version
-        uses: mikefarah/yq@v4.34.2
+        uses: mikefarah/yq@v4.35.2
         with:
           cmd: yq -i eval '.version = "${{ env.HELM_VERSION }}"' charts/irs-helm/Chart.yaml
 
diff --git a/.github/workflows/spectral.yaml b/.github/workflows/spectral.yaml
index 4cb95de87b..79e3e0d111 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/spectral.yaml
+++ b/.github/workflows/spectral.yaml
@@ -15,7 +15,7 @@ jobs:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     steps:
       # Check out the repository
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
       # Run Spectral
       - uses: stoplightio/spectral-action@latest
diff --git a/.github/workflows/spotbugs.yml b/.github/workflows/spotbugs.yml
index 59d448bd49..494513a954 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/spotbugs.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/spotbugs.yml
@@ -29,7 +29,7 @@ jobs:
 
     name: spotbugs-check
     steps:
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
       - name: Set up JDK 17
         uses: actions/setup-java@v3
diff --git a/.github/workflows/swagger-editor-validate.yml b/.github/workflows/swagger-editor-validate.yml
index 6853f4d2fc..1dd027c847 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/swagger-editor-validate.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/swagger-editor-validate.yml
@@ -15,7 +15,7 @@ jobs:
     name: Swagger Editor Validator Remote
 
     steps:
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
       - name: Validate OpenAPI definition
         uses: char0n/swagger-editor-validate@v1
         with:
diff --git a/.github/workflows/synch-env-branch.yml b/.github/workflows/synch-env-branch.yml
index f5b87320d0..3388e510d0 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/synch-env-branch.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/synch-env-branch.yml
@@ -13,7 +13,7 @@ jobs:
 
     steps:
       - name: Checkout repository
-        uses: actions/checkout@v3
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
       - name: Merge main into catena-x-environments
         run: |
diff --git a/.github/workflows/tavern-integration.yml b/.github/workflows/tavern-integration.yml
index d534c50cac..0e243f3fdc 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/tavern-integration.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/tavern-integration.yml
@@ -43,7 +43,7 @@ jobs:
   test:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     steps:
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
       - name: Setup python
         uses: actions/setup-python@v4
diff --git a/.github/workflows/tavern.yml b/.github/workflows/tavern.yml
index d41dd2481d..825e0eab82 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/tavern.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/tavern.yml
@@ -45,7 +45,7 @@ jobs:
   test:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     steps:
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
       - name: Setup python
         uses: actions/setup-python@v4
diff --git a/.github/workflows/trivy-docker-hub-scan.yml b/.github/workflows/trivy-docker-hub-scan.yml
index 1cf40378c2..a5c186afa9 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/trivy-docker-hub-scan.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/trivy-docker-hub-scan.yml
@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@ jobs:
 
     steps:
       - name: Checkout code
-        uses: actions/checkout@v3
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
       - name: Run Trivy vulnerability scanner
         uses: aquasecurity/trivy-action@master
diff --git a/.github/workflows/trivy-image-scan.yml b/.github/workflows/trivy-image-scan.yml
index fcde93dfa4..0acd9c7e1a 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/trivy-image-scan.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/trivy-image-scan.yml
@@ -36,10 +36,10 @@ jobs:
 
     steps:
       - name: Checkout repository
-        uses: actions/checkout@v3
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
       - name: Build image
-        uses: docker/build-push-action@v4
+        uses: docker/build-push-action@v5
         with:
           context: .
           push: true
diff --git a/.github/workflows/trivy.yml b/.github/workflows/trivy.yml
index ced51141a0..0dafa7fea6 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/trivy.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/trivy.yml
@@ -28,7 +28,7 @@ jobs:
 
     steps:
       - name: Checkout repository
-        uses: actions/checkout@v3
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
       - name: Run Trivy vulnerability scanner in repo mode
         uses: aquasecurity/trivy-action@master
diff --git a/.github/workflows/veracode.yaml b/.github/workflows/veracode.yaml
index d1f62c1d47..1e1bef3f0a 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/veracode.yaml
+++ b/.github/workflows/veracode.yaml
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ jobs:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
 
     steps:
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
       - name: Set up JDK 17
         uses: actions/setup-java@v3
diff --git a/.github/workflows/xray-cucumber-integration.yaml b/.github/workflows/xray-cucumber-integration.yaml
index 1ac7111cfa..b08b96bf94 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/xray-cucumber-integration.yaml
+++ b/.github/workflows/xray-cucumber-integration.yaml
@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@ jobs:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
 
     steps:
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
       - name: Set up JDK 17
         uses: actions/setup-java@v3