diff --git a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/AbstractVersionsDependencyUpdaterMojo.java b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/AbstractVersionsDependencyUpdaterMojo.java
index 41ced6e9a..8d1ddbc3a 100644
--- a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/AbstractVersionsDependencyUpdaterMojo.java
+++ b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/AbstractVersionsDependencyUpdaterMojo.java
@@ -320,16 +320,8 @@ protected String toString( Dependency d )
      */
     protected boolean isProducedByReactor( Dependency dependency )
     {
-        for ( Object reactorProject : reactorProjects )
-        {
-            MavenProject project = (MavenProject) reactorProject;
-            if ( compare( project, dependency ) )
-            {
-                return true;
-            }
-        }
-        return false;
-
+        return reactorProjects.stream()
+                .anyMatch( reactorProject -> compare( reactorProject, dependency ) );
     }
 
     /**
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/CompareDependenciesMojo.java b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/CompareDependenciesMojo.java
index 8e802ae11..74f56ae78 100644
--- a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/CompareDependenciesMojo.java
+++ b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/CompareDependenciesMojo.java
@@ -177,7 +177,7 @@ protected void update( ModifiedPomXMLEventReader pom )
             throw new MojoExecutionException( "Unable to build remote project " + remoteArtifact, e );
         }
 
-        Map<String, Dependency> remoteDepsMap = new HashMap<String, Dependency>();
+        Map<String, Dependency> remoteDepsMap = new HashMap<>();
         if ( !ignoreRemoteDependencyManagement )
         {
             List<Dependency> remoteProjectDepMgmtDeps = ( remoteMavenProject.getDependencyManagement() == null ) ? null
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/DependencyUpdatesReport.java b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/DependencyUpdatesReport.java
index b5c596037..4f16f7a43 100644
--- a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/DependencyUpdatesReport.java
+++ b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/DependencyUpdatesReport.java
@@ -42,7 +42,7 @@
 import org.codehaus.mojo.versions.utils.DependencyComparator;
 import org.codehaus.plexus.i18n.I18N;
 
-import static java.util.Collections.EMPTY_MAP;
+import static java.util.Collections.emptyMap;
 import static org.codehaus.mojo.versions.utils.MiscUtils.filter;
 
 /**
@@ -190,7 +190,7 @@ && getProject().getOriginalModel().getDependencyManagement().getDependencies() !
 
             Map<Dependency, ArtifactVersions> dependencyManagementUpdates =
                 processDependencyManagement ? getHelper().lookupDependenciesUpdates( dependencyManagement, false )
-                    : EMPTY_MAP;
+                    : emptyMap();
 
             if ( onlyUpgradable )
             {
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/DisplayDependencyUpdatesMojo.java b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/DisplayDependencyUpdatesMojo.java
index bf3a2ac18..22439e28c 100644
--- a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/DisplayDependencyUpdatesMojo.java
+++ b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/DisplayDependencyUpdatesMojo.java
@@ -23,7 +23,6 @@
 import javax.xml.stream.XMLStreamException;
 
 import java.util.ArrayList;
-import java.util.Iterator;
 import java.util.List;
 import java.util.Map;
 import java.util.Objects;
@@ -704,10 +703,8 @@ private void logUpdates( Map<Dependency, ArtifactVersions> updates, String secti
     {
         List<String> withUpdates = new ArrayList<>();
         List<String> usingCurrent = new ArrayList<>();
-        Iterator i = updates.values().iterator();
-        while ( i.hasNext() )
+        for ( ArtifactVersions versions : updates.values() )
         {
-            ArtifactVersions versions = (ArtifactVersions) i.next();
             String left = "  " + ArtifactUtils.versionlessKey( versions.getArtifact() ) + " ";
             final String current;
             ArtifactVersion latest;
@@ -719,12 +716,12 @@ private void logUpdates( Map<Dependency, ArtifactVersions> updates, String secti
             else
             {
                 ArtifactVersion newestVersion =
-                    versions.getNewestVersion( versions.getArtifact().getVersionRange(), allowSnapshots );
+                        versions.getNewestVersion( versions.getArtifact().getVersionRange(), allowSnapshots );
                 current = versions.getArtifact().getVersionRange().toString();
                 latest = newestVersion == null ? null
-                    : versions.getNewestUpdate( newestVersion, calculateUpdateScope(), allowSnapshots );
+                        : versions.getNewestUpdate( newestVersion, calculateUpdateScope(), allowSnapshots );
                 if ( latest != null
-                    && ArtifactVersions.isVersionInRange( latest, versions.getArtifact().getVersionRange() ) )
+                        && ArtifactVersions.isVersionInRange( latest, versions.getArtifact().getVersionRange() ) )
                 {
                     latest = null;
                 }
@@ -740,7 +737,7 @@ private void logUpdates( Map<Dependency, ArtifactVersions> updates, String secti
             else
             {
                 t.add( StringUtils.rightPad( left, INFO_PAD_SIZE + getOutputLineWidthOffset() - right.length(), "." )
-                           + right );
+                        + right );
             }
         }
 
@@ -757,10 +754,9 @@ private void logUpdates( Map<Dependency, ArtifactVersions> updates, String secti
             else
             {
                 logLine( false, "The following dependencies in " + section + " are using the newest version:" );
-                i = usingCurrent.iterator();
-                while ( i.hasNext() )
+                for ( String s : usingCurrent )
                 {
-                    logLine( false, (String) i.next() );
+                    logLine( false, s );
                 }
                 logLine( false, "" );
             }
@@ -778,10 +774,9 @@ private void logUpdates( Map<Dependency, ArtifactVersions> updates, String secti
         else
         {
             logLine( false, "The following dependencies in " + section + " have newer versions:" );
-            i = withUpdates.iterator();
-            while ( i.hasNext() )
+            for ( String withUpdate : withUpdates )
             {
-                logLine( false, (String) i.next() );
+                logLine( false, withUpdate );
             }
             logLine( false, "" );
         }
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/DisplayPluginUpdatesMojo.java b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/DisplayPluginUpdatesMojo.java
index 09f035fe2..78c08f721 100644
--- a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/DisplayPluginUpdatesMojo.java
+++ b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/DisplayPluginUpdatesMojo.java
@@ -196,7 +196,7 @@ private Map<String, String> getSuperPomPluginManagement()
             {
                 Method getPluginsBoundByDefaultToAllLifecycles =
                     LifecycleExecutor.class.getMethod( "getPluginsBoundByDefaultToAllLifecycles",
-                                                       new Class[] {String.class} );
+                            String.class );
                 Set<Plugin> plugins =
                     (Set<Plugin>) getPluginsBoundByDefaultToAllLifecycles.invoke( lifecycleExecutor, new Object[] {
                         getProject().getPackaging()} );
@@ -1102,7 +1102,7 @@ private Set<Plugin> getBoundPlugins( MavenProject project, String thePhases )
             {
                 Method getPluginsBoundByDefaultToAllLifecycles =
                     LifecycleExecutor.class.getMethod( "getPluginsBoundByDefaultToAllLifecycles",
-                                                       new Class[] {String.class} );
+                            String.class );
                 Set<Plugin> plugins =
                     (Set<Plugin>) getPluginsBoundByDefaultToAllLifecycles.invoke( lifecycleExecutor, new Object[] {
                         project.getPackaging() == null ? "jar" : project.getPackaging()} );
@@ -1127,7 +1127,7 @@ private Set<Plugin> getBoundPlugins( MavenProject project, String thePhases )
         getLog().debug( "Using Maven 2.0.10+ strategy to determine lifecycle defined plugins" );
         try
         {
-            Method getLifecycles = LifecycleExecutor.class.getMethod( "getLifecycles", new Class[0] );
+            Method getLifecycles = LifecycleExecutor.class.getMethod( "getLifecycles" );
             lifecycles = (List) getLifecycles.invoke( lifecycleExecutor, new Object[0] );
         }
         catch ( NoSuchMethodException | InvocationTargetException | IllegalAccessException e1 )
@@ -1221,7 +1221,7 @@ private Set<Plugin> getAllPlugins( MavenProject project, Lifecycle lifecycle )
             plugins.add( plugin );
         }
 
-        plugins.addAll( (List<Plugin>) project.getBuildPlugins() );
+        plugins.addAll( project.getBuildPlugins() );
 
         return plugins;
     }
@@ -1261,8 +1261,8 @@ private Set<Plugin> getAllPlugins( MavenProject project, Lifecycle lifecycle )
             {
                 if ( defaultMappings == null )
                 {
-                    throw new LifecycleExecutionException( "Cannot find lifecycle mapping for packaging: \'" + packaging
-                                                               + "\'.", e );
+                    throw new LifecycleExecutionException( "Cannot find lifecycle mapping for packaging: '" + packaging
+                                                               + "'.", e );
                 }
             }
         }
@@ -1271,8 +1271,8 @@ private Set<Plugin> getAllPlugins( MavenProject project, Lifecycle lifecycle )
         {
             if ( defaultMappings == null )
             {
-                throw new LifecycleExecutionException( "Cannot find lifecycle mapping for packaging: \'" + packaging
-                                                           + "\', and there is no default" );
+                throw new LifecycleExecutionException( "Cannot find lifecycle mapping for packaging: '" + packaging
+                                                           + "', and there is no default" );
             }
             else
             {
@@ -1446,7 +1446,7 @@ public Map<String, Lifecycle> getPhaseToLifecycleMap( List<Lifecycle> lifecycles
 
         for ( Lifecycle lifecycle : lifecycles )
         {
-            for ( String phase : (List<String>) lifecycle.getPhases() )
+            for ( String phase : lifecycle.getPhases() )
             {
                 if ( phaseToLifecycleMap.containsKey( phase ) )
                 {
@@ -1507,7 +1507,7 @@ private Set<Plugin> getProjectPlugins( Map<String, String> superPomPluginManagem
         debugVersionMap( "super-pom version map", superPomPluginManagement );
         debugVersionMap( "parent version map", parentPluginManagement );
 
-        Map<String, String> excludePluginManagement = new HashMap<String, String>( superPomPluginManagement );
+        Map<String, String> excludePluginManagement = new HashMap<>( superPomPluginManagement );
         excludePluginManagement.putAll( parentPluginManagement );
 
         debugVersionMap( "aggregate version map", excludePluginManagement );
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/PluginUpdatesRenderer.java b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/PluginUpdatesRenderer.java
index bf887b8a6..86a9123f1 100644
--- a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/PluginUpdatesRenderer.java
+++ b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/PluginUpdatesRenderer.java
@@ -356,8 +356,8 @@ private void renderPluginDetail( Plugin plugin, PluginUpdatesDetails details )
         headerAttributes.addAttribute( SinkEventAttributes.WIDTH, "80%" );
         sink.section2();
         sink.sectionTitle2();
-        sink.text( MessageFormat.format( getText( "report.plugin" ), new Object[] {
-            ArtifactUtils.versionlessKey( plugin.getGroupId(), plugin.getArtifactId() )} ) );
+        sink.text( MessageFormat.format( getText( "report.plugin" ),
+                ArtifactUtils.versionlessKey( plugin.getGroupId(), plugin.getArtifactId() ) ) );
         sink.sectionTitle2_();
         sink.table();
         sink.tableRows( new int[] {Sink.JUSTIFY_RIGHT, Sink.JUSTIFY_LEFT}, false );
@@ -510,16 +510,16 @@ else if ( equals( versions[i],
         {
             sink.section3();
             sink.sectionTitle3();
-            sink.text( MessageFormat.format( getText( "report.pluginDependencies" ), new Object[] {
-                ArtifactUtils.versionlessKey( plugin.getGroupId(), plugin.getArtifactId() )} ) );
+            sink.text( MessageFormat.format( getText( "report.pluginDependencies" ),
+                    ArtifactUtils.versionlessKey( plugin.getGroupId(), plugin.getArtifactId() ) ) );
             sink.sectionTitle3_();
 
             renderDependencySummaryTable( details.getDependencyVersions(), false, true, true );
 
             sink.section3_();
 
-            details.getDependencyVersions().entrySet()
-                .forEach( entry -> renderDependencyDetail( entry.getKey(), entry.getValue() ) );
+            details.getDependencyVersions()
+                    .forEach( this::renderDependencyDetail );
         }
         sink.section2_();
     }
@@ -528,8 +528,8 @@ private void renderDependencyDetail( Dependency dependency, ArtifactVersions det
     {
         sink.section3();
         sink.sectionTitle3();
-        sink.text( MessageFormat.format( getText( "report.pluginDependency" ), new Object[] {
-            ArtifactUtils.versionlessKey( dependency.getGroupId(), dependency.getArtifactId() )} ) );
+        sink.text( MessageFormat.format( getText( "report.pluginDependency" ),
+                ArtifactUtils.versionlessKey( dependency.getGroupId(), dependency.getArtifactId() ) ) );
         sink.sectionTitle3_();
         renderDependencyDetailTable( dependency, details, false, true, true );
         sink.section3_();
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/SetMojo.java b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/SetMojo.java
index 9fee67c5d..206417570 100644
--- a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/SetMojo.java
+++ b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/SetMojo.java
@@ -348,11 +348,11 @@ public void execute() throws MojoExecutionException, MojoFailureException
             getLog().info( "Local aggregation root: " + project.getBasedir() );
             Map<String, Model> reactorModels = PomHelper.getReactorModels( project, getLog() );
             final SortedMap<String, Model> reactor =
-                new TreeMap<String, Model>( new ReactorDepthComparator( reactorModels ) );
+                    new TreeMap<>( new ReactorDepthComparator( reactorModels ) );
             reactor.putAll( reactorModels );
 
             // set of files to update
-            final Set<File> files = new LinkedHashSet<File>();
+            final Set<File> files = new LinkedHashSet<>();
 
             getLog().info(
                 "Processing change of " + groupId + ":" + artifactId + ":" + oldVersion + " -> " + newVersion );
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/UpdateParentMojo.java b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/UpdateParentMojo.java
index b3ee61b8a..f7e62c01e 100644
--- a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/UpdateParentMojo.java
+++ b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/UpdateParentMojo.java
@@ -143,7 +143,7 @@ protected void update( ModifiedPomXMLEventReader pom )
             if ( artifactVersion != null )
             {
                 getLog().info( "Updating parent from " + getProject().getParent().getVersion()
-                        + " to " + artifactVersion.toString() );
+                        + " to " + artifactVersion );
 
                 if ( PomHelper.setProjectParentVersion( pom, artifactVersion.toString() ) )
                 {
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/UseLatestReleasesMojo.java b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/UseLatestReleasesMojo.java
index c48197b2c..5a2a88544 100644
--- a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/UseLatestReleasesMojo.java
+++ b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/UseLatestReleasesMojo.java
@@ -222,19 +222,18 @@ && isProcessingParent() )
     private ArtifactVersion[] filterVersionsWithIncludes( ArtifactVersion[] newer, Artifact artifact )
     {
         List<ArtifactVersion> filteredNewer = new ArrayList<>( newer.length );
-        for ( int j = 0; j < newer.length; j++ )
+        for ( ArtifactVersion artifactVersion : newer )
         {
-            ArtifactVersion artifactVersion = newer[j];
             Artifact artefactWithNewVersion =
-                new DefaultArtifact( artifact.getGroupId(), artifact.getArtifactId(),
-                                     VersionRange.createFromVersion( artifactVersion.toString() ), artifact.getScope(),
-                                     artifact.getType(), null, new DefaultArtifactHandler(), false );
+                    new DefaultArtifact( artifact.getGroupId(), artifact.getArtifactId(),
+                            VersionRange.createFromVersion( artifactVersion.toString() ), artifact.getScope(),
+                            artifact.getType(), null, new DefaultArtifactHandler(), false );
             if ( isIncluded( artefactWithNewVersion ) )
             {
                 filteredNewer.add( artifactVersion );
             }
         }
-        return filteredNewer.toArray( new ArtifactVersion[filteredNewer.size()] );
+        return filteredNewer.toArray( new ArtifactVersion[0] );
     }
 
 }
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/UseReactorMojo.java b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/UseReactorMojo.java
index 467a2d747..b4d2b91f8 100644
--- a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/UseReactorMojo.java
+++ b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/UseReactorMojo.java
@@ -106,9 +106,9 @@ private void useReactor( ModifiedPomXMLEventReader pom, Collection<Dependency> d
                 continue;
             }
 
-            for ( Object reactorProject : reactorProjects )
+            for ( MavenProject reactorProject : reactorProjects )
             {
-                MavenProject project = (MavenProject) reactorProject;
+                MavenProject project = reactorProject;
                 if ( StringUtils.equals( project.getGroupId(), dep.getGroupId() )
                     && StringUtils.equals( project.getArtifactId(), dep.getArtifactId() )
                     && !StringUtils.equals( project.getVersion(), dep.getVersion() ) )
@@ -127,9 +127,8 @@ private void useReactor( ModifiedPomXMLEventReader pom, Collection<Dependency> d
     private void useReactor( ModifiedPomXMLEventReader pom, MavenProject parent )
         throws XMLStreamException, ArtifactMetadataRetrievalException
     {
-        for ( Object reactorProject : reactorProjects )
+        for ( MavenProject project : reactorProjects )
         {
-            MavenProject project = (MavenProject) reactorProject;
             if ( StringUtils.equals( project.getGroupId(), parent.getGroupId() )
                 && StringUtils.equals( project.getArtifactId(), parent.getArtifactId() )
                 && !StringUtils.equals( project.getVersion(), parent.getVersion() ) )
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/api/DefaultVersionsHelper.java b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/api/DefaultVersionsHelper.java
index 7331d857c..a7685eecc 100644
--- a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/api/DefaultVersionsHelper.java
+++ b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/api/DefaultVersionsHelper.java
@@ -21,10 +21,10 @@
 
 import java.io.BufferedInputStream;
 import java.io.File;
-import java.io.FileInputStream;
 import java.io.IOException;
 import java.io.InputStream;
 import java.net.URL;
+import java.nio.file.Files;
 import java.util.ArrayList;
 import java.util.Arrays;
 import java.util.Collection;
@@ -192,7 +192,7 @@ private static RuleSet getRuleSet( Wagon wagon, String remoteURI )
         try
         {
             wagon.get( remoteURI, tempFile );
-            try ( InputStream is = new FileInputStream( tempFile ) )
+            try ( InputStream is = Files.newInputStream( tempFile.toPath() ) )
             {
                 return readRulesFromStream( is );
             }
@@ -356,7 +356,7 @@ private static RuleSet getRulesViaWagon( String rulesUri, Log logger, String ser
         {
             throw new MojoExecutionException( "Authorization failure trying to load rules from " + rulesUri, e );
         }
-        catch ( ResourceDoesNotExistException e )
+        catch ( ResourceDoesNotExistException | IOException e )
         {
             throw new MojoExecutionException( "Could not load specified rules from " + rulesUri, e );
         }
@@ -372,10 +372,6 @@ private static RuleSet getRulesViaWagon( String rulesUri, Log logger, String ser
         {
             throw new MojoExecutionException( "Could not establish connection to " + rulesUri, e );
         }
-        catch ( IOException e )
-        {
-            throw new MojoExecutionException( "Could not load specified rules from " + rulesUri, e );
-        }
 
         return loadedRules;
     }
@@ -395,7 +391,8 @@ public Log getLog()
     public ArtifactVersions lookupArtifactVersions( Artifact artifact, boolean usePluginRepositories )
         throws ArtifactMetadataRetrievalException
     {
-        List remoteRepositories = usePluginRepositories ? remotePluginRepositories : remoteArtifactRepositories;
+        List<ArtifactRepository> remoteRepositories = usePluginRepositories
+                ? remotePluginRepositories : remoteArtifactRepositories;
         final List<ArtifactVersion> versions =
             artifactMetadataSource.retrieveAvailableVersions( artifact, localRepository, remoteRepositories );
         final List<IgnoreVersion> ignoredVersions = getIgnoredVersions( artifact );
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/api/PomHelper.java b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/api/PomHelper.java
index b7dde0e88..74a344b16 100644
--- a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/api/PomHelper.java
+++ b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/api/PomHelper.java
@@ -30,7 +30,6 @@
 import java.util.ArrayList;
 import java.util.Arrays;
 import java.util.Collection;
-import java.util.Enumeration;
 import java.util.HashMap;
 import java.util.HashSet;
 import java.util.Iterator;
@@ -1300,9 +1299,8 @@ private static void addProperties( VersionsHelper helper, Map<String, PropertyVe
         {
             return;
         }
-        for ( Enumeration<String> j = (Enumeration<String>) properties.propertyNames(); j.hasMoreElements(); )
+        for ( String propertyName :  properties.stringPropertyNames() )
         {
-            String propertyName = j.nextElement();
             if ( !result.containsKey( propertyName ) )
             {
                 result.put( propertyName, new PropertyVersionsBuilder( profileId, propertyName, helper ) );
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/api/PropertyVersions.java b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/api/PropertyVersions.java
index 629234964..c24aa2e4a 100644
--- a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/api/PropertyVersions.java
+++ b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/api/PropertyVersions.java
@@ -307,7 +307,7 @@ public String toString()
     }
 
     public ArtifactVersion getNewestVersion( String currentVersion, Property property, boolean allowSnapshots,
-                                             List reactorProjects, VersionsHelper helper )
+                                             List<MavenProject> reactorProjects, VersionsHelper helper )
             throws InvalidVersionSpecificationException, InvalidSegmentException
     {
         return getNewestVersion( currentVersion, property, allowSnapshots, reactorProjects, helper, false, -1 );
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/ordering/MercuryVersionComparator.java b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/ordering/MercuryVersionComparator.java
index 335538a0c..95cd1ef44 100644
--- a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/ordering/MercuryVersionComparator.java
+++ b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/ordering/MercuryVersionComparator.java
@@ -71,7 +71,7 @@ protected ArtifactVersion innerIncrementSegment( ArtifactVersion v, int segment
             if ( tok.hasMoreTokens() )
             {
                 // grab the token separator
-                result.append( version.substring( index, index + 1 ) );
+                result.append( version.charAt( index ) );
                 index++;
             }
             segment--;
@@ -122,7 +122,7 @@ else if ( "final".equalsIgnoreCase( token ) || "ga".equalsIgnoreCase( token )
                 if ( tok.hasMoreTokens() )
                 {
                     // grab the token separator
-                    result.append( version.substring( index, index + 1 ) );
+                    result.append( version.charAt( index ) );
                     index++;
                 }
 
@@ -141,7 +141,7 @@ else if ( "final".equalsIgnoreCase( token ) || "ga".equalsIgnoreCase( token )
             if ( tok.hasMoreTokens() )
             {
                 // grab the token separator
-                result.append( version.substring( index, index + 1 ) );
+                result.append( version.charAt( index ) );
                 index++;
             }
         }
diff --git a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/utils/PropertiesVersionsFileReader.java b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/utils/PropertiesVersionsFileReader.java
index 5a4f7f565..98fcaa40a 100644
--- a/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/utils/PropertiesVersionsFileReader.java
+++ b/src/main/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/utils/PropertiesVersionsFileReader.java
@@ -1,8 +1,9 @@
 package org.codehaus.mojo.versions.utils;
 
-import java.io.FileInputStream;
 import java.io.IOException;
 import java.io.InputStream;
+import java.nio.file.Files;
+import java.nio.file.Paths;
 import java.util.ArrayList;
 import java.util.List;
 import java.util.Properties;
@@ -29,7 +30,7 @@ public PropertiesVersionsFileReader( String filePath )
 
     public void read() throws IOException
     {
-        try ( InputStream input = new FileInputStream( propertyFilePath ) )
+        try ( InputStream input = Files.newInputStream( Paths.get( propertyFilePath ) ) )
         {
 
             Properties prop = new Properties();
diff --git a/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/DisplayDependencyUpdatesMojoTest.java b/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/DisplayDependencyUpdatesMojoTest.java
index 3b113f7f5..e7ec9d863 100644
--- a/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/DisplayDependencyUpdatesMojoTest.java
+++ b/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/DisplayDependencyUpdatesMojoTest.java
@@ -70,7 +70,7 @@ public void testValidateGAVListFailed()
                     "group:artifact:version:type" ), 3, "" );
             fail( "Method should have thrown a MojoExecutionException" );
         }
-        catch ( MojoExecutionException e )
+        catch ( MojoExecutionException ignored )
         {
         }
     }
diff --git a/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/RewriteWithStAXTest.java b/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/RewriteWithStAXTest.java
index f8cd2700c..76a70b147 100644
--- a/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/RewriteWithStAXTest.java
+++ b/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/RewriteWithStAXTest.java
@@ -29,6 +29,7 @@
 
 import java.io.ByteArrayInputStream;
 import java.io.ByteArrayOutputStream;
+import java.nio.charset.StandardCharsets;
 import java.util.Stack;
 
 import org.codehaus.mojo.versions.rewriting.ModifiedPomXMLEventReader;
@@ -36,7 +37,7 @@
 import org.junit.Test;
 
 import static org.junit.Assert.assertEquals;
-import static org.junit.Assert.assertFalse;
+import static org.junit.Assert.assertNotEquals;
 
 /**
  * Basic tests for rewriting XML with a StAX (JSR-173) implementation.
@@ -54,7 +55,7 @@ public void testBasic()
             + "    <artifactId>mojo-&amp;sandbox-parent</artifactId>\n" + "    <version>5-SNAPSHOT</version>\r"
             + "  </parent>\r" + "<build/></project>";
 
-        byte[] rawInput = input.getBytes( "utf-8" );
+        byte[] rawInput = input.getBytes( StandardCharsets.UTF_8 );
         ByteArrayInputStream source = new ByteArrayInputStream( rawInput );
         ByteArrayOutputStream dest = new ByteArrayOutputStream();
         XMLInputFactory inputFactory = XMLInputFactory2.newInstance();
@@ -67,9 +68,9 @@ public void testBasic()
             eventWriter.add( eventReader.nextEvent() );
         }
 
-        String output = new String( dest.toByteArray(), "utf-8" );
+        String output = dest.toString( "utf-8" );
 
-        assertFalse( "StAX implementation is not good enough", input.equals( output ) );
+        assertNotEquals( "StAX implementation is not good enough", input, output );
     }
 
     @Test
@@ -212,7 +213,7 @@ public void testReplaceFancy()
         inputFactory.setProperty( XMLInputFactory2.P_PRESERVE_LOCATION, Boolean.TRUE );
         ModifiedPomXMLEventReader eventReader = new ModifiedPomXMLEventReader( output, inputFactory, null );
 
-        Stack<String> stack = new Stack<String>();
+        Stack<String> stack = new Stack<>();
         String path = "";
 
         while ( eventReader.hasNext() )
diff --git a/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/SeparatePatternsForIncludesAnExcludesTest.java b/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/SeparatePatternsForIncludesAnExcludesTest.java
index b238079b8..f17e63817 100644
--- a/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/SeparatePatternsForIncludesAnExcludesTest.java
+++ b/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/SeparatePatternsForIncludesAnExcludesTest.java
@@ -33,14 +33,14 @@ protected void update( ModifiedPomXMLEventReader pom )
     @Test
     public void testSeparatePatternsWithNull()
     {
-        List patterns = mojo.separatePatterns( null );
+        List<String> patterns = mojo.separatePatterns( null );
         assertEquals( 0, patterns.size() );
     }
 
     @Test
     public void testSeparatePatternsWithSinglePattern()
     {
-        List patterns = mojo.separatePatterns( "group:artifact:type:version" );
+        List<String> patterns = mojo.separatePatterns( "group:artifact:type:version" );
         assertEquals( 1, patterns.size() );
         assertEquals( "group:artifact:type:version", patterns.get( 0 ) );
     }
@@ -48,7 +48,7 @@ public void testSeparatePatternsWithSinglePattern()
     @Test
     public void testSeparatePatternWithSingleRange()
     {
-        List patterns = mojo.separatePatterns( "group:artifact:type:[1.0.2,2.0.0]" );
+        List<String> patterns = mojo.separatePatterns( "group:artifact:type:[1.0.2,2.0.0]" );
         assertEquals( 1, patterns.size() );
         assertEquals( "group:artifact:type:[1.0.2,2.0.0]", patterns.get( 0 ) );
 
@@ -60,7 +60,8 @@ public void testSeparatePatternWithSingleRange()
     @Test
     public void testSeparatePatternWithSeveralPatternsAndRanges()
     {
-        List patterns = mojo.separatePatterns( "group:artifact:type:[1.0.2,2.0.0),group2:artifact:type:(1.0.2,2.0.0]" );
+        List<String> patterns = mojo.separatePatterns(
+                "group:artifact:type:[1.0.2,2.0.0),group2:artifact:type:(1.0.2,2.0.0]" );
         assertEquals( 2, patterns.size() );
         assertEquals( "group:artifact:type:[1.0.2,2.0.0)", patterns.get( 0 ) );
         assertEquals( "group2:artifact:type:(1.0.2,2.0.0]", patterns.get( 1 ) );
@@ -69,7 +70,7 @@ public void testSeparatePatternWithSeveralPatternsAndRanges()
     @Test
     public void testSeparatePatternsWithTwoCommaSeparatedPatterns()
     {
-        List patterns = mojo.separatePatterns( "group:artifact:type:version,group:artifact:type:version2" );
+        List<String> patterns = mojo.separatePatterns( "group:artifact:type:version,group:artifact:type:version2" );
         assertEquals( 2, patterns.size() );
         assertEquals( "group:artifact:type:version", patterns.get( 0 ) );
         assertEquals( "group:artifact:type:version2", patterns.get( 1 ) );
@@ -78,7 +79,7 @@ public void testSeparatePatternsWithTwoCommaSeparatedPatterns()
     @Test
     public void testSeparatePatternsWithSeveralCommaSeparatedPatterns()
     {
-        List patterns = mojo.separatePatterns( "group:artifact:type:version,group:artifact:type:version2,"
+        List<String> patterns = mojo.separatePatterns( "group:artifact:type:version,group:artifact:type:version2,"
                                                    + "group:artifact:type:version3,group:artifact:type:version4" );
         assertEquals( 4, patterns.size() );
         assertEquals( "group:artifact:type:version", patterns.get( 0 ) );
diff --git a/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/SetMojoTest.java b/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/SetMojoTest.java
index 831812041..b8d5ff77a 100644
--- a/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/SetMojoTest.java
+++ b/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/SetMojoTest.java
@@ -18,7 +18,7 @@
 public class SetMojoTest extends AbstractMojoTestCase
 {
     @Rule
-    MojoRule mojoRule = new MojoRule( this );
+    public MojoRule mojoRule = new MojoRule( this );
 
     @Test
     public void testGetIncrementedVersion() throws MojoExecutionException
diff --git a/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/SetPropertyMojoTest.java b/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/SetPropertyMojoTest.java
index 4f1ecf436..1005ade87 100644
--- a/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/SetPropertyMojoTest.java
+++ b/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/SetPropertyMojoTest.java
@@ -48,7 +48,7 @@
 public class SetPropertyMojoTest extends AbstractMojoTestCase
 {
     @Rule
-    MojoRule mojoRule = new MojoRule( this );
+    public MojoRule mojoRule = new MojoRule( this );
 
     private Path pomDir;
 
diff --git a/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/UseDepVersionMojoTest.java b/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/UseDepVersionMojoTest.java
index d00e6ced5..290a02194 100644
--- a/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/UseDepVersionMojoTest.java
+++ b/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/UseDepVersionMojoTest.java
@@ -35,7 +35,7 @@
 public class UseDepVersionMojoTest extends AbstractMojoTestCase
 {
     @Rule
-    MojoRule mojoRule = new MojoRule( this );
+    public MojoRule mojoRule = new MojoRule( this );
 
     @Test
     public void testIssue673() throws Exception
diff --git a/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/api/DefaultVersionsHelperTest.java b/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/api/DefaultVersionsHelperTest.java
index 625a115dd..ada1bf729 100644
--- a/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/api/DefaultVersionsHelperTest.java
+++ b/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/api/DefaultVersionsHelperTest.java
@@ -181,7 +181,7 @@ public void testMVERSIONS159ExcludedAndNotIncluded()
             new Property( "bar.version" )
         };
         // should not throw an IllegalStateException
-        Map result =
+        Map<Property, PropertyVersions> result =
             helper.getVersionPropertiesMap( project, propertyDefinitions, "foo.version", "bar.version", false );
         assertTrue( result.isEmpty() );
     }
diff --git a/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/filtering/DependencyFilterTest.java b/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/filtering/DependencyFilterTest.java
index 9458df0b2..956facfb6 100644
--- a/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/filtering/DependencyFilterTest.java
+++ b/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/filtering/DependencyFilterTest.java
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 package org.codehaus.mojo.versions.filtering;
 
+import java.util.Collections;
 import java.util.HashSet;
 import java.util.Set;
 
@@ -29,7 +30,8 @@ class RemoveFromTest
         @Test
         void removesExcludedDepsWithExactMatch()
         {
-            DependencyFilter exclusions = DependencyFilter.parseFrom( asList( "localhost:my-impl:3" ) );
+            DependencyFilter exclusions = DependencyFilter.parseFrom(
+                    Collections.singletonList( "localhost:my-impl:3" ) );
 
             Set<Dependency> actual = exclusions.removingFrom( input );
 
@@ -45,7 +47,8 @@ void removesExcludedDepsWithExactMatch()
         @Test
         void removesExcludedDepsWithWildcardInVersion()
         {
-            DependencyFilter exclusions = DependencyFilter.parseFrom( asList( "localhost:my-impl:*" ) );
+            DependencyFilter exclusions = DependencyFilter.parseFrom(
+                    Collections.singletonList( "localhost:my-impl:*" ) );
 
             Set<Dependency> actual = exclusions.removingFrom( input );
 
@@ -61,7 +64,7 @@ void removesExcludedDepsWithWildcardInVersion()
         @Test
         void removesExcludedDepsWithWildcardInGroupId()
         {
-            DependencyFilter exclusions = DependencyFilter.parseFrom( asList( "localhost:*:*" ) );
+            DependencyFilter exclusions = DependencyFilter.parseFrom( Collections.singletonList( "localhost:*:*" ) );
 
             Set<Dependency> actual = exclusions.removingFrom( input );
 
@@ -76,7 +79,7 @@ void removesExcludedDepsWithWildcardInGroupId()
         @Test
         void removesExcludedDepsWithAllWildcards()
         {
-            DependencyFilter exclusions = DependencyFilter.parseFrom( asList( "*:*:*" ) );
+            DependencyFilter exclusions = DependencyFilter.parseFrom( Collections.singletonList( "*:*:*" ) );
 
             Set<Dependency> actual = exclusions.removingFrom( input );
 
@@ -118,7 +121,8 @@ class RetainingInTest
         @Test
         void retainsOnlyDepsWithExactMatch()
         {
-            DependencyFilter exclusions = DependencyFilter.parseFrom( asList( "localhost:my-impl:3" ) );
+            DependencyFilter exclusions = DependencyFilter.parseFrom(
+                    Collections.singletonList( "localhost:my-impl:3" ) );
 
             Set<Dependency> actual = exclusions.retainingIn( input );
 
@@ -133,7 +137,8 @@ void retainsOnlyDepsWithExactMatch()
         @Test
         void retainsOnlyDepsMatchingWildcardInVersion()
         {
-            DependencyFilter exclusions = DependencyFilter.parseFrom( asList( "localhost:my-api:*" ) );
+            DependencyFilter exclusions = DependencyFilter.parseFrom(
+                    Collections.singletonList( "localhost:my-api:*" ) );
 
             Set<Dependency> actual = exclusions.retainingIn( input );
 
@@ -148,7 +153,7 @@ void retainsOnlyDepsMatchingWildcardInVersion()
         @Test
         void retainsOnlyDepsWithMultipleWildcards()
         {
-            DependencyFilter exclusions = DependencyFilter.parseFrom( asList( "localhost:my-*:*" ) );
+            DependencyFilter exclusions = DependencyFilter.parseFrom( Collections.singletonList( "localhost:my-*:*" ) );
 
             Set<Dependency> actual = exclusions.retainingIn( input );
 
@@ -164,7 +169,7 @@ void retainsOnlyDepsWithMultipleWildcards()
         @Test
         void retainsAllOnAllWildcards()
         {
-            DependencyFilter exclusions = DependencyFilter.parseFrom( asList( "*:*:*" ) );
+            DependencyFilter exclusions = DependencyFilter.parseFrom( Collections.singletonList( "*:*:*" ) );
 
             Set<Dependency> actual = exclusions.retainingIn( input );
 
diff --git a/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/ordering/VersionComparatorsTest.java b/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/ordering/VersionComparatorsTest.java
index 06bdbf7f3..0e63326ec 100644
--- a/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/ordering/VersionComparatorsTest.java
+++ b/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/ordering/VersionComparatorsTest.java
@@ -57,10 +57,10 @@ public void testNumericVersionComparator() throws InvalidSegmentException
 
     public void assertVersions( VersionComparator instance ) throws InvalidSegmentException
     {
-        for ( int i = 0; i < versionDataset.length; i++ )
+        for ( String s : versionDataset )
         {
-            assertLater( versionDataset[i], instance );
-            assertLater( versionDataset[i] + "-SNAPSHOT", instance );
+            assertLater( s, instance );
+            assertLater( s + "-SNAPSHOT", instance );
         }
     }
 
diff --git a/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/utils/PropertiesVersionsFileReaderTest.java b/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/utils/PropertiesVersionsFileReaderTest.java
index 7b2e05ce3..cc0e880cc 100644
--- a/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/utils/PropertiesVersionsFileReaderTest.java
+++ b/src/test/java/org/codehaus/mojo/versions/utils/PropertiesVersionsFileReaderTest.java
@@ -35,8 +35,8 @@ private boolean equalsCvsUnordered( String csvExpected, String csvActual )
         {
             return false;
         }
-        Set<String> listExpected = new HashSet<String>( Arrays.asList( csvExpected.split( "," ) ) );
-        Set<String> listActual = new HashSet<String>( Arrays.asList( csvActual.split( "," ) ) );
+        Set<String> listExpected = new HashSet<>( Arrays.asList( csvExpected.split( "," ) ) );
+        Set<String> listActual = new HashSet<>( Arrays.asList( csvActual.split( "," ) ) );
         return listExpected.equals( listActual );
     }
 }