Common Security Dangers Lurking in Cloud Environments
Cloud security is no longer just a subset of IT, it’s a set of integrated backbone services that determines whether organizations maintain continuity, trust and compliance. Cloud customers expect performance and protection. Executives expect stability and optimization. Attackers expect misconfigurations. Reality favors whoever prepares early.
This guide provides an overview of recurring problems we see in our experience performing cloud security assessments, along with practical steps to harden systems and help prevent these problems in the future.
Cloud Platform Usage Patterns that Lead to Vulnerabilities
Complexity without Visibility
Unlike traditional IT environments where security teams had direct visibility and control, cloud environments can be extremely complex. Cloud technology makes it easy to provision infrastructure spanning multiple networks, regions, services, and access points, which can create an intricate web of potential attack vectors.
Automation without Underlying Knowledge of Automation
The cloud is built around automation and integration. Automation technologies are designed to create efficiency but can create unintended misconfigurations that expose systems to threats.
Temporary Infrastructure
The cloud is an excellent platform for temporary, sandbox, environments for development and proof-of-concept work. Unfortunately, discovering these environments commonly over-privileged and not properly disposed of are a common finding in our assessments. The longer you are in the cloud, the more cruft that is likely lurking around your cloud architecture.
Self-Service Infrastructure
People treat and trust it blindly is a real problem. As is how some companies expand into it without resources to properly manage it.
Default Configurations
The “Secure by Default” Myth: Understanding Cloud Security Realities
You’ve likely heard conflicting statements: “The cloud is secure by default” and “The cloud is NOT secure by default.” Both are true, and understanding this paradox is crucial to protecting your organization.
What IS Secure by Default:
- Data encryption in transit for most services
- Identity and access management foundations
- Network isolation between customer environments
- Physical infrastructure security
What IS NOT Secure by Default – Requires Additional Hardening:
- Storage bucket access permissions
- Database and application-level encryption
- Network access controls and firewall rules
- Logging, monitoring, and alerting configurations
- Cross-service permissions and integrations
Lack of Default Monitoring
You could face cloud threats for extended periods of time without detection if you aren’t actively monitoring your cloud environment. Because of this, a small compromise could turn into a much larger cloud breach across your infrastructure.
Basic mitigation steps:
- Document relevant events like log attempts, failed authentication, API calls, and other details to help you find anomalies. (A solution like Wiz helps you filter out noise and prioritize risks.)
- Centralize your logs from servers, applications, and cloud services into one cloud native solution for full visibility.
- Automate detection and alerting to get on top of issues in real time.
Permission Sprawl and Credential Management
Poor access management can lead to credential theft, like the Dropbox Sign breach, where attackers exploited an access flaw to reach sensitive systems. All major cloud providers have services to help manage credentials, such as AWS IAM Access Analyzer.
Unclassified Cloud Context:
Cloud systems should be classified so they can be governed effectively. Once systems are classified the proper level of security control and access can be assigned to the system. For example, systems with data containing PII or other types of protected data require a higher level of protection than unprotected data.
Common Classifications Include:
- Public / Private Network Access
- Data Sensitivity
- PROD/DEV Environment
- Workload / Solution
- Cloud Tenancy
- Resource Grouping/Segmentation
Triaxiom Security: Comprehensive, Actionable, Results-Driven Security
Don’t let hidden vulnerabilities put your business at risk. Our comprehensive cloud security risk assessments provide the visibility and actionable insights you need to protect your organization from evolving cyber threats.
When you partner with Triaxiom Security, you’re not just getting a security assessment – you’re gaining a strategic advantage:
- Certified cloud security experts with deep expertise across all major cloud platforms
- Proven methodology refined through hundreds of successful security assessments
- Actionable recommendations prioritized by business impact and feasibility
Our expertise spans across all major cloud platforms and security domains. Whether you’re planning a cloud migration (see our considerations for moving to the cloud), need comprehensive AWS security assessments (learn what to expect from our AWS security assessment process), or require specialized penetration testing in cloud environments (explore our cloud penetration testing services), we have the expertise to protect your organization.
Final Thoughts
Ready to strengthen your AWS environment? Whether you are preparing for compliance, addressing a recent misconfiguration concern, or proactively managing risk, our team is here to support you. We will give you a clear view of your current cloud security posture and provide a practical roadmap to enhance it.
Continue reading to learn about common security gaps in AWS.
Schedule a free introduction call and learn how we can help you get confidence in your cloud security.
