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Map the responsibility boundary before changing settings
Cloud security is shared, but the division of work differs by provider and service. A managed Kubernetes control plane, a customer-managed cluster, and a standalone Linux VM can leave different patching, logging, identity, and network tasks with the customer. Do not assume that a provider’s service name or managed label means every component is maintained or secured for you.
Inventory the actual workload and record who is responsible for each layer. NSA’s March 7, 2024 cloud strategy release treats shared responsibility, identity and key management, segmentation and encryption, data security, CI/CD, infrastructure as code, multi-cloud, managed service providers, and cloud logs as connected strategy areas. CIS’s Cloud Companion Guide for CIS Controls v8.1, published December 9, 2024, likewise addresses customer-side safeguards in cloud environments.
| Layer to map | Questions to answer |
|---|---|
| Cloud account and identity | Who can administer accounts, change IAM policies, issue credentials, and manage keys? |
| Linux image and host | Who selects the image, applies operating-system updates, configures host services, and operates confinement controls? |
| Kubernetes control plane and worker nodes | Which components does the provider operate, and which cluster, node, and access settings remain yours? |
| Application, image, and dependencies | Who builds, scans, approves, signs, publishes, and deploys the software? |
| Network, storage, and data | Who configures network boundaries, encryption, access to secrets, backups, and restoration? |
| Logs and response | Which cloud and workload events are available, who retains them, and can responders access them during an incident? |
For hybrid or multi-cloud estates, record differences in identity systems, key management, networking, and log coverage instead of treating one provider’s safeguards as a portable baseline. Check the chosen service’s current documentation: the general control areas are useful across environments, but their implementation is service-specific.
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Reduce human and workload privileges
Use cloud IAM and workload identities that grant only the actions each person or process needs. Separate human administration from application credentials, keep privileged access limited, and avoid long-lived credentials where the service supports a more controlled alternative.
Kubernetes needs an additional distinction: permission to create or modify resources that manage pods can become a path to powerful access on cluster nodes. Kubernetes’ Security Checklist therefore calls for careful access control, not just a review of direct administrator roles.
- Restrict who can create or modify pods and pod-managing resources; review Kubernetes RBAC alongside admission and pod-security controls.
- Do not mount a service-account token into a pod unless the workload needs it. Where supported, use short-lived or bound credentials and narrowly scoped workload identities.
- Keep credentials and confidential values out of source code, container images, and ordinary configuration objects.
- Separate deployment permissions from routine application runtime permissions so a compromised process cannot automatically change its own deployment or broaden its cloud access.
Harden Linux hosts and Kubernetes boundaries
For Linux virtual machines
Maintain a supported operating-system image and establish who is responsible for patching it. Remove or disable services that the workload does not need, restrict administrative access, and use host controls appropriate to the distribution and application. Where operationally suitable, a read-only or specialized node image can reduce unnecessary host components; it is not a universal fit.
For Kubernetes clusters
Protect the interfaces that can control or inspect the cluster. Kubernetes security guidance highlights the API server, kubelet API, and etcd as sensitive surfaces. Avoid exposing them publicly unless there is a deliberate, protected access path. Confirm what the provider secures for a managed control plane and what remains configurable by the cluster operator.
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Consider whether pods need access to the cloud metadata API. If not, filter that access; metadata services can expose credentials or other sensitive instance information depending on the environment. Apply network policies to limit both ingress and egress. A default-deny starting point with explicit allow rules can make intended communication clearer, but its practicality depends on the cluster’s networking implementation and the chosen CNI’s capabilities. Use mTLS or another supported encryption mechanism where workload traffic needs it.
Constrain processes and containers
On Linux nodes, use supported confinement mechanisms such as Seccomp and AppArmor or SELinux, selecting and testing profiles against the application rather than copying a single profile everywhere. Kubernetes’ cloud-native security guidance also recommends reducing unnecessary process privileges. Run containers without elevated privileges when possible, and grant additional capabilities only when the workload requires them.
Protect secrets, volumes, and recoverable data
Treat console access and application access to data as separate controls. A person who can enter a cloud console should not be the only barrier protecting application secrets, and a pod should not automatically receive credentials merely because it runs in the cluster.
- Keep confidential values out of ConfigMaps and source code. Encrypt Kubernetes Secret storage at rest and control which identities can read or update secrets.
- Avoid unnecessary service-account token mounts. Prefer controlled file or volume delivery over environment variables when it reduces exposure through logs or crash dumps.
- Protect storage volumes and application data with encryption and access controls appropriate to the data and service. Protect key-management operations as carefully as the encrypted data itself.
- Back up persistent data and relevant cluster configuration. Exercise restoration periodically: a successful backup job alone does not establish that the workload can be recovered.
Secure the build and deployment path
A hardened host cannot compensate for an untrusted or vulnerable image. Treat application code, base images, dependencies, build systems, and artifact repositories as part of the workload’s security boundary. NIST SP 800-204D, whose publication record is dated February 12, 2024, covers software supply-chain security strategies in DevSecOps CI/CD pipelines.
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- Review code and threat boundaries before release, and scan dependencies and build artifacts for known issues.
- Use minimal container images and keep base images and dependencies patched. Restrict access to artifact repositories and deployment credentials.
- Authenticate image sources and verify provenance or signatures where your delivery system supports it. Enforce an approval or signature policy at admission when appropriate.
- Identify production images by immutable digest where practical rather than relying on a mutable tag as the sole reference. A tag can be moved to a different image; a digest identifies the specific artifact.
- Gate deployment identities and configuration changes. Review what a deployment can create or modify, not only what the running application can access.
Collect useful logs and rehearse response
Collect cloud logs and Kubernetes audit records that let responders reconstruct identity changes, control-plane activity, and workload events. Protect log integrity and availability, set retention to meet operational and legal needs, and make sure responders can reach the telemetry during an incident. NSA’s cloud strategies explicitly include managing cloud logs for threat hunting; Kubernetes cloud-native guidance emphasizes observability data and validating backup restoration.
Decide in advance who investigates a suspected credential exposure, compromised image, or unauthorized workload. Include the steps to revoke or rotate affected credentials, isolate a workload or network path, preserve relevant logs, and restore data or configuration from a tested recovery point.
Compare deployment options by control, not by label
There is no universal best configuration for every Linux distribution, cloud, or managed service. Use these questions to compare a self-managed VM, managed Kubernetes, or another managed runtime without assuming a provider ranking:
- Operations: Who patches the host, maintains the control plane, and updates the runtime?
- Identity and keys: Which human and workload identity mechanisms are available, and how are keys created, rotated, and protected?
- Network and metadata: Can you restrict management interfaces, pod traffic, and access to metadata endpoints?
- Isolation: Which process confinement and privilege controls can workloads use?
- Artifacts: Can the platform restrict image sources and verify signatures or provenance?
- Visibility and recovery: Which audit and cloud logs are available and retained, and who operates backups and restoration?
Kubernetes’ Security Checklist says its recommendations are not exhaustive and need context-specific evaluation. Use the current documentation for the selected provider, service, Linux distribution, and Kubernetes version to verify which controls exist and which party operates them.
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