Cloud Security

🚨CISA & NSA release Crucial Guide on Network Segmentation and Encryption in Cloud Environments🚨 In response to the evolving requirements of cloud security, the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and the National Security Agency (NSA) recently released a comprehensive Cybersecurity Information Sheet (CSI): "Implement Network Segmentation and Encryption in Cloud Environments." This document provides detailed recommendations to enhance the security posture of organizations operating within cloud infrastructures (that probably means you). Key Takeaways Include: 🔐 Network Encryption: The document underscores the importance of encrypting data in transit as a defense mechanism against unauthorized data access. 🌐 Secure Client Connections: Establishing secure connections to cloud services is fundamental. 🔎 Caution on Traffic Mirroring: While recognizing the benefits of traffic mirroring for network analysis and threat detection, the guidance cautions against potential misuse that could lead to data exfiltration and advises careful monitoring of this feature. 🛡️ Network Segmentation: Stressed as a foundational security principle, network segmentation is recommended to isolate and contain malicious activities, thereby reducing the impact of any breach. This collaboration between NSA and CISA provides actionable recommendations for organizations to strengthen their cloud security practices. The emphasis is on strategically implementing network segmentation and end-to-end encryption to secure cloud environments effectively. Information security leaders are encouraged to review this guidance to understand better the measures necessary to protect cloud-based assets. Implementing these recommendations will contribute to a more secure, resilient, and compliant cloud infrastructure. Access the complete guidance provided by the NSA and CISA to fully understand these recommendations and their application to your organization’s cloud security strategy. 📚 Read CISA & NSA's complete guidance here: https://lnkd.in/eeVXqMSv #cloudcomputing #technology #informationsecurity #innovation #cybersecurity

🔐 RBAC vs. ABAC: Choosing the Right Access Control for Your IAM Strategy 🚀 In Identity and Access Management (IAM), controlling who can access what is critical. Two powerful approaches—Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) and Attribute-Based Access Control (ABAC)—offer distinct ways to manage permissions. But which one fits your needs? Let’s break it down! 🧠 🔍 Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) What is it? Assigns permissions based on predefined roles tied to job functions (e.g., "Admin," "Developer"). Users inherit access through their roles. How it works: Admins define roles and assign users to them. Permissions are tied to roles, not individuals. Best for: Organizations with clear hierarchies and stable access needs (e.g., enterprise apps like Salesforce). Pros: Simple to implement and manage. Scalable for large teams with similar access needs. Supported by most IAM tools (e.g., Okta, AWS IAM). Cons: Less flexible for dynamic or complex access scenarios. Can lead to "role explosion" with too many roles. Example: A "Marketing" role grants access to social media tools but not financial systems. Fun Fact: RBAC is a staple in traditional enterprises for its straightforward approach! 🔑 Attribute-Based Access Control (ABAC) What is it? Grants access based on attributes (e.g., user’s department, location, time, or device) using dynamic policies. How it works: Policies evaluate attributes in real-time to decide access (e.g., "Allow access if user is in HR, in the UK, during work hours"). Best for: Dynamic, complex environments like cloud-native apps or zero-trust architectures. Pros: Highly granular and flexible for nuanced access needs. Adapts to context (e.g., location, risk level). Ideal for modern IAM platforms like Ping Identity. Cons: More complex to set up and maintain. Requires robust policy management and attribute data. Example: An employee can access sensitive data only from a secure device in the office. Fun Fact: ABAC’s flexibility makes it a go-to for zero-trust security models! ⚖️ Key Differences: Approach: RBAC uses static roles; ABAC uses dynamic attributes. Flexibility: RBAC is simpler but rigid; ABAC is flexible but complex. Use Case: RBAC suits structured organizations; ABAC excels in dynamic, cloud, or high-security settings. Scalability: RBAC is easier for broad access; ABAC scales better for fine-grained control. 💡 Why They Matter Together: RBAC offers simplicity for standard access, while ABAC provides precision for complex scenarios. Many IAM tools (e.g., SailPoint, Microsoft Entra ID) support both, letting you combine them for hybrid strategies. For example, use RBAC for employee apps and ABAC for sensitive data access. 🔥 Pro Tip: Start with RBAC for quick wins, then layer ABAC for high-risk or dynamic use cases. Tools like Okta or Saviynt make this seamless! Which do you use—RBAC, ABAC, or both? Share your IAM insights or challenges below! 💬 #Cybersecurity #IAM #RBAC #ABAC #Tech

NSA and CISA released five (5!) guidance documents last week on the theme of Cloud Security Best Practices, bundled together for convenience in the attached. What's the TL;DR? 🔐 Use Secure Cloud Identity and Access Management Practices: Implement robust authentication methods, manage access controls effectively, and secure identity federation systems to protect cloud environments from unauthorized access. 🔐 Use Secure Cloud Key Management Practices: Securely manage encryption keys using hardware security modules (HSMs), enforce separation of duties, and establish clear key destruction policies to safeguard sensitive data in the cloud. 🔐 Implement Network Segmentation and Encryption in Cloud Environments: Utilize encryption for data in transit, employ micro-segmentation to isolate network traffic, and configure firewalls to control data flow paths within the cloud. 🔐 Secure Data in the Cloud: Protect data using strong encryption, implement data loss prevention tools, ensure regular backups and redundancy, enforce strict access controls, and continuously monitor data access and activities. 🔐 Mitigate Risks from Managed Service Providers in Cloud Environments: Establish clear contracts outlining security responsibilities, continuously monitor service provider activities, and ensure compliance with security standards to reduce risks associated with managed service providers in cloud environments. Some common themes that run through all of these are the need for encryption, implementing access control (with a special call-out for ABAC being a key element of Zero Trust), key management, and monitoring and logging. Also, for those who celebrate it: Happy Pi Day!

Letter V: Vulnerability Management: Best Practices for a Patchwork World Our ‘A to Z of Cybersecurity’ explores Vulnerability Management - the ongoing process of identifying, prioritizing, and remediating vulnerabilities in your systems and software. It's like patching the leaks in your digital fortress! In a world of constantly evolving threats, vulnerability management is a critical practice: The Vulnerability Landscape: · Software Vulnerabilities: New vulnerabilities are discovered all the time, so staying up-to-date is crucial. · Exploit Availability: Cybercriminals are quick to develop exploits for known vulnerabilities. · Patch Management Challenges: Deploying patches across a complex IT infrastructure can be challenging. Building a Strong Defense: · Vulnerability Scanning: Regularly scan your systems for known vulnerabilities using automated tools. · Prioritization & Remediation: Prioritize patching based on the severity of the vulnerability and the potential impact. · Patch Management Process: Develop a systematic process for deploying patches efficiently and testing for compatibility issues. Continuous Vigilance: · Staying Up-to-Date: Subscribe to security advisories from software vendors and relevant cybersecurity organizations. · Vulnerability Intelligence: Leverage threat intelligence feeds to stay informed about emerging vulnerabilities. · Penetration Testing: Regularly simulate cyberattacks to identify and address any remaining vulnerabilities. Vulnerability management is an ongoing process, not a one-time fix. By implementing a comprehensive strategy, you can proactively identify and address vulnerabilities before they can be exploited by attackers. #QuickHeal #Seqrite #Cybersecurity #VulnerabilityManagement

☁️"Domestic is not sovereign, nor is it necessarily safe." haunting words from Simon about what “sovereign” really means. Many assume that if servers are located in an Australian data centre, their data is both sovereign and safe, let me throw a curve ball to make it more complex. 📃Take a look at two U.S. laws: the USA PATRIOT Act (2001) and the U.S. CLOUD Act (2018), together, they give U.S. authorities sweeping powers to access data held by American companies (*cough* no matter where in the world that data sits, including Australia). ➡️Under the Patriot Act, agencies gained expanded surveillance rights to compel access to business and personal records in the name of national security. 🎯The Cloud Act takes that reach further, allowing the U.S. Government to demand data from U.S.-based providers, even if those servers are hosted here in Australia. ⚠️This means that although you may have a “secure” Azure, AWS, or Google instance located onshore, those environments are still bound by U.S. jurisdiction. Encryption helps, but how many organisations actually implement robust, end-to-end encryption and manage their keys 🔑independently? ✅Sovereignty aside, misconfiguration risk is already a major issue, here's some FACTS: - 27% of organisations report a public cloud breach according to SentinelOne. - Around 9% of cloud storage is publicly accessible, and 97% of that exposed data is sensitive according to Tenable - 21% of exposed S3 buckets contain sensitive data due to poor access controls. 🗺️So sure, location matters, BUT, legal jurisdiction and configuration controls matter more. Simply hosting workloads onshore doesn’t guarantee sovereignty or safety. What protects your business is a layered strategy: encryption, independent key management, rigorous configuration governance, continuous monitoring, and a complete understanding of the regulatory landscape you’re operating under. 👉 Don’t turn a blind eye by where your cloud is. Focus on who controls it, what laws apply, and how it’s secured. Need help in understanding your requirements, AND, securing your cloud environment? Why not reach out to the cloud and security experts at ASE Tech. #ShiftHappens #DataCentre #ThinkBeforeYouClick

Are you prepared for the storm that may be brewing in your cloud environment? With the right tools and strategies, you can secure your assets and fortify your defenses. Here’s your Advanced Cloud Security Audit Checklist using open-source tools: ➡️ Cloud Resource Inventory Management - Use CloudMapper to discover and map all cloud assets. - Ensure accurate asset tracking for security visibility. ➡️ IAM Configuration Analysis - Audit IAM policies with PMapper to identify risks. - Enforce least privilege access to minimize the attack surface. ➡️ Data Encryption Verification - Validate encryption protocols with OpenSSL & AWS KMS. - Ensure data encryption at rest and in transit. ➡️ Network Security & Vulnerability Assessment - Scan security groups & NACLs using Scout2 or Prowler. - Detect unintended access points and misconfigurations. ➡️ API Security & Vulnerability Scanning - Test API authentication with OWASP ZAP or APIsec. - Identify API weaknesses and prevent unauthorized access. ➡️ Cloud Penetration Testing & Vulnerability Scanning - Continuously scan for vulnerabilities using OpenVAS or Nessus. - Detect and remediate security flaws in cloud infrastructure. ➡️ IaC Security Auditing - Review Terraform & CloudFormation with Checkov. - Detect misconfigurations before deployment. ➡️ Logging & Cloud Activity Monitoring - Aggregate security logs using ELK Stack or Wazuh. - Perform anomaly detection to spot suspicious activity. ➡️ Cloud Compliance & Regulatory Monitoring - Automate security compliance checks with Cloud Custodian. - Ensure adherence to GDPR, HIPAA, and SOC 2 standards. ➡️ Audit Trail & Incident Response - Monitor cloud logs using AWS CloudTrail or Google Audit Logs. - Track administrative activity and detect threats early. ➡️ MFA Enforcement & Audit - Verify MFA settings across critical accounts. - Enforce multi-factor authentication using MFA Checker. ➡️ Cloud Backup & Disaster Recovery - Perform integrity checks using Duplicity or Restic. - Validate recovery point objectives (RPO) and test restores. Follow Satyender Sharma for more insights !

ISO 27001 – Understanding RBAC vs ABAC Theme: Access Control Models Control Reference: 8.2 – Identity and Access Management ||Why It Matters|| Controlling access to sensitive information is crucial for maintaining security and regulatory compliance. Choosing the right access control model helps you: ==>Minimize data exposure ==>Enforce least privilege ==>Simplify audits & reviews ==>Adapt access rules based on dynamic conditions --- RBAC – Role-Based Access Control Access is granted based on the user’s job role (e.g., HR, IT, Finance). It’s ideal for organizations with well-defined roles. Example: A Finance Officer can access accounting systems, but not development servers. Pros: Easy to implement Scalable in static environments Aligns well with organizational hierarchy --- ABAC – Attribute-Based Access Control Access is granted based on attributes like user location, device type, time of day, and job function. It’s suitable for dynamic environments and zero trust models. Example: A user can access sensitive data only during working hours, from a company-issued laptop, within a specific geolocation. ==Pros== Fine-grained control Context-aware decisions Greater flexibility in cloud & remote access scenarios --- Key Tools & Techniques IAM Solutions: Okta, Azure AD, Ping Identity ABAC Engines: Axiomatics, NextLabs Policy Enforcement Points: CASBs, Secure Gateways SIEMs & Logs for access reviews and anomalies --- Pro Tip: Start with RBAC to establish baseline access, then gradually integrate ABAC policies to enhance context-driven security. --- #ISO27001 #AccessControl #RBAC #ABAC #IdentityAndAccessManagement #CyberSecurity #LeastPrivilege #ZeroTrust #InformationSecurity #IAM #Infosec #DataProtection #SecureAccess #ISMS #SecurityArchitecture

𝐔𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝟒𝐂'𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐂𝐥𝐨𝐮𝐝-𝐍𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲 🚀🔐 In today's digital landscape, embracing cloud-native security is crucial for any organization looking to leverage the full potential of cloud computing. The 4C's of Cloud-Native Security provide a comprehensive framework to ensure robust security in cloud environments: 𝐂𝐨𝐝𝐞: Secure coding practices are foundational. It's essential to integrate security early in the development process (shift-left approach), conduct regular code reviews, and use static application security testing (SAST) tools to detect vulnerabilities. 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐫: Containers are pivotal in cloud-native architectures. Ensuring container security involves using trusted base images, regularly updating images, and scanning for vulnerabilities. Implement runtime security measures to monitor and protect containers from threats. 𝐂𝐥𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫: Kubernetes and other orchestration tools manage clusters of containers. Securing the cluster involves network segmentation, role-based access control (RBAC), and continuously monitoring the cluster's health and security posture. 𝐂𝐥𝐨𝐮𝐝: The cloud infrastructure itself must be secure. This includes enforcing strong identity and access management (IAM) policies, encrypting data at rest and in transit, and regularly auditing and monitoring cloud resources for compliance. By focusing on these 4C's, we can build robust, secure, and resilient cloud-native applications that withstand the evolving threat landscape. Let’s continue to prioritize security at every layer and safeguard our digital future! 🌐🔒 #cloudnativesecurity #DevSecOps #cybersecurity #cloudcomputing #securedevelopment #containersecurity #kubernetes #cloudsecurity #securebydesign

Here's the last post sharing what I spoke about during PDP Week. Our moderator Christopher (2024 Global Vanguard Award for Asia) comes up with the most creative titles for panel discussions. He called this one 'Weather Forecast: Cloudy with a Chance of Breach'. Together with Aparna and Abhishek, we talked about privacy and security in the cloud. 1. Who do you typically engage with IRT privacy and security for the cloud? I wanted to dispel the misconception that if a company engages a cloud service provider (CSP) to store your data, they are responsible for privacy and security, and the company doesn't need to do anything. Generally, the cloud customer is still responsible for security in the cloud e.g. configuring user access to data, services that the customer uses. The CSP is responsible for security of the cloud e.g. physical protection of servers, patching flaws. This is known as "shared responsibility" between the CSP and cloud customer. The extent of each party's responsibilities depend on the deployment used e.g. SaaS, PaaS, IaaS. 2. Shared responsibility also applies within organisations e.g. - IT helps with technical implementation and maintenance of cloud services - IT security helps protect data from unauthorised access - Privacy, Legal, and Compliance provide guidance on compliance with laws, and ensure that contracts with CSPs and vendors include privacy and security clauses 3. What tools/processes are involved in privacy considerations for securing cloud use? They include a Privacy Impact Assessment when e.g. new cloud services are used to process sensitive data, when cloud use involves data transfers to various countries. Privacy management tools include encryption, anonymisation, pseudonymisation, access controls. CSPs usually make audit reports available to prospective and current customers, you can request for them. Also, have a well defined incident response plan. 4. How do you implement and manage breach or incident response for the multi-cloud? Multi-cloud environments can be challenging, because each CSP may have its own set of interfaces, tools, processes for incident response. You need to develop a unified incident response framework that can be applied across all cloud providers, which defines standard procedures for detecting, reporting, and responding to incidents, and which can enable collaboration between different cloud environments. The framework must facilitate internal coordination between various teams, as well as external coordination with CSPs. CSPs play a critical role in incident response, as they control the infrastructure and have visibility into their own environments. Ensure that roles and responsibilities are clearly defined, that you understand your legal obligations IRT breach notification e.g. who you need to notify and by when. Get corp comms' help with communication strategies vis-a-vis affected parties, regulators, staff, and other stakeholders. #APF24