Moving to the cloud feels a bit like renting a high-tech apartment. The landlord handles the plumbing, locks the front gate, and keeps the lights on. But if you leave your front door wide open and someone steals your television, that’s on you.
The same logic applies to Amazon Web Services (AWS). It’s a powerful platform, but moving your data there doesn’t automatically make it bulletproof—instead, Amazon uses a shared responsibility model. That means you still have to remember to lock your own doors! Let’s get into the details of what AWS does and doesn’t protect so you can make sure you’re doing your part.
The AWS Shared Responsibility Model Explained
To keep everyone on the same page, Amazon created the AWS Shared Responsibility Model, which is a clear breakdown of who is responsible for what regarding security on the AWS platform.
These divided responsibilities give your business some foundational guidelines to follow, and as long as those are met, you can still build and configure your systems as desired.
Security of the Cloud: What AWS Actively Protects
Under this model, AWS is responsible for the security of the cloud. This means they handle the heavy lifting required to protect the infrastructure powering all of their services. This includes:
- Physical data center security
- Hardware and server infrastructure
- Networking infrastructure
- Global cloud availability and redundancy
- The virtualization layer
- Underlying operating systems used by AWS services
Security in the Cloud: What Your Business Owns
Here’s the catch: you’re responsible for security in the cloud. Your organization owns and must carefully protect absolutely everything you store or build in your AWS environment. Your specific to-do list includes:
- Identity and access management (IAM)
- User permissions and roles
- Data protection and encryption
- Application security
- Network configurations
- Operating system patching (for certain services)
- Security monitoring and logging
- Compliance with regulatory requirements
How Responsibility Shifts Based on Service Type
To make things slightly more interesting, your exact portion of the shared responsibility model changes depending on the specific AWS service you choose. If you choose a basic plan, you have to patch the operating system yourself. But if you use a fully managed database service, AWS handles those OS updates for you.
Common Cloud Security Blunders Businesses Make
Even with a clear dividing line, companies still trip up. Treating the cloud like a magical, self-securing vault often leads to easily preventable data breaches. Here are a few common areas where businesses frequently drop the ball:
- Overly permissive user access
- Misconfigured storage buckets
- Weak authentication practices
- Unpatched virtual machines
Best Practices for Locking Down Your AWS Environment
Realizing you might not be as secure as you thought? Follow these straightforward strategies to ensure your side of the shared responsibility model is fulfilled.
Implement Strong Identity and Access Controls
Give your employees the exact permissions they need to do their jobs, and nothing else. Enforce multi-factor authentication (MFA) to stop unauthorized logins in their tracks.
Monitor Your Cloud Environment
You can’t stop a threat if you can’t see it! Use automated logging and monitoring tools to spot unusual behavior as soon as possible.
Encrypt Sensitive Data
Scramble your information while it sits in storage and when it moves across the network. If someone does manage to intercept it, they’ll just see useless gibberish.
Regularly Review Security Configurations
Cloud environments change quickly. Audit your firewall rules, access policies, and storage settings frequently to catch any accidental security gaps.
Maintain Patch and Update Management
If your part of the shared responsibility model is managing your own virtual machines, don’t ignore those update notifications! Apply patches quickly to shut the door on known software vulnerabilities.
Ready to Secure Your Cloud? Let RedNight Help
RedNight provides the expert managed IT and AWS cloud services you need to sleep soundly. We can help you configure, monitor, and lock down your environment so you can focus on growing your business. Reach out today and let’s set sail together!