In case you’re utilizing AWS, it is simple to imagine your cloud safety is dealt with – however that is a harmful false impression. AWS secures its personal infrastructure, however safety inside a cloud surroundings stays the client’s duty.
Consider AWS safety like defending a constructing: AWS supplies sturdy partitions and a strong roof, but it surely’s as much as the client to deal with the locks, set up the alarm techniques, and guarantee valuables aren’t left uncovered.
On this weblog, we’ll make clear what AWS does not safe, spotlight real-world vulnerabilities, and the way cloud safety scanners like Intruder will help.
Understanding the AWS Shared Accountability Mannequin
AWS operates on a Shared Responsibility Model. In easy phrases:
- AWS is liable for securing the underlying infrastructure (e.g., {hardware}, networking, information facilities) – the “partitions and roof.”
- The client is liable for securing their information, functions, and configurations inside AWS – the “locks and alarms.”
Understanding this distinction is crucial for sustaining a safe AWS surroundings.
5 Actual-World AWS Vulnerabilities You Have to Tackle
Let’s take a look at some real-world vulnerabilities that fall below the client’s duty and what could be performed to mitigate them.
Server-Aspect Request Forgery (SSRF)
Purposes hosted in AWS are nonetheless weak to assaults like SSRF, the place attackers trick a server into making requests on their behalf. These assaults may end up in unauthorized information entry and additional exploitation.
To defend towards SSRF:
- Frequently scan and repair vulnerabilities in functions.
- Allow AWS IMDSv2, which supplies a further safety layer towards SSRF assaults. AWS supplies this safeguard, however configuration is the client’s duty.
Entry Management Weaknesses
AWS Establish and Entry Administration (IAM) permits clients to handle who can entry what sources – but it surely’s solely as sturdy as its implementation. Clients are liable for guaranteeing customers and techniques solely have entry to the sources they honestly want.
Frequent missteps embody:
- Overly permissive roles and entry
- Lacking safety controls
- By accident public S3 buckets
Knowledge Exposures
AWS clients are liable for the safety of the info they retailer within the cloud – and for the way their functions entry that information.
For instance, in case your utility connects to an AWS Relational Database Service (RDS), the client should be sure that the appliance does not expose delicate information to attackers. A easy vulnerability like an Insecure Direct Object Reference (IDOR) is all it might take for an attacker with a person account to entry information belonging to all different customers.
Patch Administration
It virtually goes with out saying, however AWS doesn’t patch servers! Clients who deploy EC2 cases are absolutely liable for protecting the working system (OS) and software program updated.
Take Redis deployed on Ubuntu 24.04 for example – the client is liable for patching vulnerabilities in each the software program (Redis) and the OS (Ubuntu). AWS solely manages underlying {hardware} vulnerabilities, like firmware points.
AWS companies like Lambda scale back some patching obligations, however you are still liable for utilizing supported runtimes and protecting issues updated.
Firewalls and Assault Floor
AWS offers clients management over their assault floor, however is not liable for what they select to reveal.
As an example, if a GitLab server is deployed on AWS, the client is liable for layering it behind a VPN, utilizing a firewall, or putting it inside a Digital Non-public Cloud (VPC) whereas guaranteeing their group has a safe strategy to entry it. In any other case, a zero-day vulnerability may depart your information compromised, and AWS will not be at fault.
The Key Takeaway
These examples make one factor clear: cloud safety does not come out of the field. Whereas AWS secures the underlying infrastructure, all the things constructed on prime of it’s the buyer’s duty. Overlooking that reality can expose a corporation to critical threat – however with the appropriate instruments, staying safe is fully inside attain.
Degree Up Your Cloud Safety With Intruder
Intruder helps you keep forward of all these vulnerabilities and extra, by combining agentless cloud security scanning, vulnerability scanning, and assault floor administration in a single highly effective, easy-to-use platform.
Why it is a recreation changer:
- Discover what others miss: Intruder combines exterior vulnerability scanning with info from AWS accounts to search out dangers that different options may miss.
- No false alarms: CSPM instruments can overhype severity. Intruder prioritizes actual dangers so you possibly can deal with what actually issues.
- Crystal clear fixes: Points are defined in plain English with step-by-step remediation steerage.
- Steady safety: Keep forward with steady monitoring and alerts when new dangers emerge.
- Predictable pricing: Not like different cloud safety instruments that may rack up unpredictable prices, there is not any shock fees with Intruder.
Get arrange in minutes and obtain immediate insights into your cloud safety – start your 14 day free trial today.
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