This document provides an overview of how to protect an AWS environment. It discusses common types of managed service providers (MSPs) that focus on AWS, including cloud-native MSPs. It also covers important security topics like infrastructure security, network security, host security, data encryption, identity management, and monitoring/auditing. Specific recommendations are given around securing networking with options like Direct Connect, VPNs, and segmentation. The document emphasizes central monitoring, auditing, and encrypting all data for protection.

1. How to Protect Your
AWS Environment
Lahav Savir, CEO & Architect
Emind Cloud Experts

2. A Global Expert in
Cloud Enablement for Products,
SaaS ISV, and Online Solutions

3. Top Level Partnership

4. A “Cloud-native” MSP
Market Guide for Managed Service Providers on Amazon Web Services (Lydia Leong, Oct. 2015)
“Amazon Web Services does not offer managed
services, but many customers want to use AWS as a
cloud IaaS and PaaS platform, while outsourcing IT
operations or application management. AWS's
ecosystem of MSP partners can fulfill this need.”
https://www.gartner.com/doc/3157620/market-guide-managed-service-providers
“Common Types of MSPs (on AWS) with Example
References
● Cloud-native MSPs. These MSPs were either
founded specifically to provide services on cloud
IaaS, or pivoted to entirely focus their business
on these services. Many of these MSPs are AWS-
specific. Examples include 2nd Watch,
Cloudnexa, Cloudreach, Emind and Minjar”

5. The future is all about cloud computing.
Report shows how by 2018, over 78% of
workloads will be managed by cloud data
centers as against the remaining 22%
processed by traditional data centers.

6. Where there is more data,
there is bound to be more
data breaches!

7. Security
in the
Cloud
Security
of the
Cloud

8. Assessing the Risk:
Yes, the Cloud Can Be More
Secure Than Your On-Premises
Environment
IDC, July 2015

9. Why the Cloud is
more Secure?
● More segmentation
(separation)
● More encryption
● Stronger
authentication
● More logging and
monitoring

10. Top Topics
● Infrastructure
Security
● Network Security
● Host Security
● Data Encryption
● Identity Management
● Monitoring &
Auditing

11. Identity Federation

12. Why do you need
Single Identity?
● Multiple AWS
Accounts
● Multiple Security
Policies
● Multiple Entry Points
● Many Resources
● Multiple 3rd Party
Services

13. Single Identity
Provider
● Single Password
Policy
● Single Lock Policy
● Single OTP
● Single Login Audit
● Same username used
across all resources

14. Organization users accessing:
AWS Resources
● AWS Console
● AWS API
● Network Access / VPN
● EC2 Instances
Other Resources
● New Relic
● Datadog
● Pingdom
● Google Apps
● Office 365
● Jira
● Github
● Logz.io
● ...

15. ● Don't mix Corporate
and Cloud Resources
● Minimize Replication
● Maximize Federation

16. Corporate
● Corporate Active Directory
● Mix of users and desktops / servers
● 3rd Party SSO / Federation Services
Cloud
● Cloud Active Directory
● Cloud Resources Only
Integration
● One Way Trust between Corp AD and Cloud
AD

17. Login Scenarios
● AWS Console
○ SAML Federation
● VPN
○ Radius
● Jumpbox on EC2
○ Radius / LDAP
● Windows instance on EC2
○ Kerberos / LDAP
● Linux instance on EC2
○ Kerberos / LDAP
No need for IAM Users

19. Network Access

20. Networking
● Public Internet
● VPN / IPSec Tunnel
● DirectConnect

21. Direct Connect
Options
● Private Virtual Interface –
Access to VPC
○ Note: Not VPC Endpoints or
transitive via VPC Peering
● Public Virtual Interface –
Access to non-VPC
Services

22. SSL VPN
Options
● OpenVPN
● Fortinet Fortigate
● Sophos
● pfSense
● … Others

23. Don’t assume your corporate network is
secure and expose your production
networks to all users

24. Smart Separation

25. Inbound
Application
Outbound

26. ● Create a controlled environment that
minimizes human mistakes
● Inspect inbound and outbound traffic

27. Host Security

28. What’s Host
Security ?
● OS Hardening
● Anti Virus
● Malware Protection
● Host Based IPS
● File Integrity Monitoring
● Vulnerability Scanning

29. Data Encryption

30. AWS Encryption Options
Data at Rest
● EBS Encryption (inc. root device)
● S3 Client / Server Side Encryption
● RDS / Redshift Storage Encryption
● DynamoDB Client Side Encryption
https://d0.awsstatic.com/whitepapers/aws-securing-data-at-
rest-with-encryption.pdf
Data in Transit
● API’s are TLS Encrypted
● Service Endpoints are TLS Encrypted
● Elastic Load Balancer supports TLS
● CloudFront supports TLS
● IPSec VPN

31. Encrypt all your data, you never know who
and when someone will request access to
the data

32. Centrally Monitor and Audit

33. Events Sources
● CloudTrail
● ELB / S3 / CloudFront
Access Logs
● VPC Flow logs
● AWS Inspector
● Host AV & IPS
● Network WAF & IPS
● Evident.io / Dome9
● Observable

38. ● Create Clear Visibility
● Set Governance Rules
● Define Actions

39. Join our Fastlane to a
Successful Cloud Deployment
Thank you,
lahavs@emind.co