Cloud Automation and Other Cloud Threats
Scripting
Basy, python, powershell, ruby, etc
If its worth doing once, its worth automating
Scripts: Collection of commands that can be run without human intervention
Static and error-prone
Orchestration
Next level after scripts
Automation and creation of the sequence of tasks to be executed
Automation of automation
Features
Implicit validation
Resource dependency evaluation
State knowledge
Idempotency – Apply the same workflow multiple times over the same set of resources.
Examples
Terraform
Ansible
Chef
Puppet
Docker, Kubernetes
FaaS / Serverless Computing
Based on microservices
No concerns about the infrastructure, just provide the code to be run
Code runs in instantiated short-lived container which is immediately destroyed upon completion of execution
Only pay for how long your code runs
Code security is your responsibility
Common Cloud Security Issues
Cloud APIs
HTTPS
API input validation
Rate limiting, anti-DDoS
Unintended data exposure
Improper key management
API keys (cloud APIs included) required for authentication of every request
Avoid hardcoding API keys in code
Least privilege
Unused keys
Key rotation
Key storage
Workstation security posture
Unprotected storage
Access control policies to storage
Permissions on cloud storage can be complex
Careful with write permissions on read only content
Careful with read permissions on sensitive content
Logging and monitoring
Generally, less visibility in the cloud
But better integrated cloud native tools
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