How Should Secure Cloud-Native Applications

Technology is a key component of modern businesses’ day-to-day operations. Businesses are adopting Cloud Native Application Development and other design patterns to improve their time-to-market and modernize their business operations. Cloud computing can present security risks of many types that are difficult to overcome. As they can have a profound impact on the image of a business, security issues must be addressed with care.

There have been many instances of identity theft and security breaches due to cloud-based applications and platforms. There are many security risks, including data breaches, API vulnerabilities, insecure APIs, and account hijacking. Data loss, malicious insiders as well as insufficient credential management, and denial-of-service. Cloud Native Security Architecture is required to secure an application’s Cloud Native Infrastructure. This strategy allows security teams to monitor and protect platforms and applications on the cloud.

Protecting Against Threats

To counter these threats, organizations should have a dual-pronged strategy. They should first adopt a zero-trust model for their data and services. They should also integrate security practices into the software development lifecycle (SDLC). This is possible by adopting the DevOps approach. Container technologies are being used by enterprises to simplify the deployment process and package cloud-native apps. One such container technology is Docker. The Elastic Container Service is another option that makes it simple to manage, scale, and position containerized applications. This allows you to automate the deployment, scaling, management, and management of containerized applications.

The 4 Cs – The Pillars of Cloud-Native Security

Cloud, Clusters, and Containers are the four Cs of Cloud Native security. The Code layer is the highest level of protection, with Cloud, Cluster, Containers, and Containers being the layers below.

Cloud

Infrastructure security is the basis of all security layers. It is an integral part of Cloud services provided by respective providers such as AWS (Amazon Web Services), Google Cloud, and Microsoft Azure.

Clusters

Kubernetes, the operating tool standard for this layer, addresses the primary security concerns such as secrets management, RBAC authorization, network policies, and pod security policy.

Containers

Image signing, container vulnerability scanning, and prohibiting privileged users are the recommended security measures for this layer.

Code

This layer is managed by organizations to ensure security recommendations, such as adopting DevSecOps techniques, performing static code analysis, and ensuring security is part of the CI/CD pipeline.

A Model of Security with Shared Responsibility

The security of the public cloud is shared by the service providers and customers. The service provider is responsible to ensure the security of the Cloud infrastructure used to deliver services. They also have responsibility for the operation of the network and physical layers. Customers, on the other hand, are responsible for their business logic and data layer protection as well as the application code. To ensure strong security layers, it is important to have good teamwork between customers and service providers.

Automating Cloud Native Security

The DevOps approach is based on increased collaboration and transparency between development and operation processes. Enterprises should not ignore security in order to speed up the time to market. They should also avoid any attempts to lower security levels. DevOps is a way to protect security by incorporating security operations and measures early in the software development process.

Shift-Left Security Strategy

When designing and building systems, security should be a priority. It is important to shift security to one side during development. Shifting security to the left during development is cost-prohibitive because it allows for security testing and implementation during the development phase. It also avoids having to do this before production.

Many vulnerabilities are found at the application level, which increases the risk of cyber-attacks. Static application security testing, (SAST), and other tools scan the code base to identify vulnerabilities such as cross-site scripting and SQL injection.

Container Security

Containers provide security and isolation but it also raises security concerns such as denial-of-service attacks, kernel exploits, and container breakouts. Because issues in one container could potentially impact other instances on the same host, it is important to reduce the attack surface. It is important to ensure that users are restricted in access and use the principle of least privilege.

Integrate Security into CI/CD Pipelines

It is crucial to integrate security controls into automated pipelines in order to deliver quality software. You must ensure that the DevOps pipeline is equipped with all the required permissions. This will allow you to make changes in your environment.

Developers have the option to use open-source and commercial security tools for their CI/CD pipes. It is possible to infuse security into the pipelines by identifying security issues early and using low-friction methods.