CSA: Hidden AWS Risks: Securing Overlooked Resources

May 22, 2025

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Source URL: https://checkred.com/resources/blog/the-hidden-risk-in-your-cloud-stack-how-overlooked-aws-resources-become-entry-points-for-hackers/
Source: CSA
Title: Hidden AWS Risks: Securing Overlooked Resources

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**Summary:**
The incident involving Angel One highlights significant vulnerabilities in cloud security, particularly regarding AWS infrastructure. It underscores the dangers of cloud sprawl, misconfiguration, and inadequate visibility into cloud resources. The text emphasizes the necessity for strict credential hygiene, continuous monitoring, and robust incident response strategies to mitigate risks. This information is crucial for professionals in cloud security and compliance, as it outlines practical steps for addressing common vulnerabilities in cloud environments.

**Detailed Description:**
The article discusses a notable security breach experienced by Angel One, a financial services platform in India, which was linked to unauthorized access to its AWS infrastructure. Although no funds were lost, the threat posed to the personal records of over 8 million users serves as a warning about cloud security vulnerabilities:

– **Key Breach Insights:**
– The breach was detected through dark-web monitoring alerts and traced back to AWS resource misconfigurations.
– It emphasizes that attackers leverage overlooked points of entry rather than directly attacking visible resources.

– **Cloud Security Challenges:**
– Organizations face issues like **cloud sprawl**, where rapid deployment leads to lost visibility over assets, permissions, and governance.
– The AWS Shared Responsibility Model places the onus of security on organizations while AWS secures the infrastructure.

– **Common Overlooked AWS Resources:**
– **S3 Buckets:** Frequently misconfigured, leading to public access issues.
– **IAM Roles & Policies:** Old or unused roles might be exploited if they have elevated permissions.
– **EC2 Instances:** Dormant instances can be potential backdoors into networks.
– **Lambda Functions & CloudTrail:** Neglected functions and logging can silence alarms during an incident.

– **Development Lifecycle Vulnerabilities:**
– Development processes often bypass security protocols, creating unnoticed risks that can transition to production environments.

– **Best Practices for Mitigation:**
– **Credential Hygiene:** Regular rotation of access keys, implementing multi-factor authentication (MFA), and utilizing short-lived credentials are critical to reduce exposure.
– **Visibility Tools:** Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM) tools can effectively audit and remediate misconfigurations and flag potential risks.
– **Incident Response Preparedness:** Maintaining an up-to-date inventory of all assets—including tagging and risk classifications—ensures that organizations can respond swiftly to incidents.

– **Conclusion:**
– The breach served as a critical reminder for businesses in regulated sectors to prioritize visibility and governance in their cloud strategies.
– Organizations must consistently ask whether they are truly aware of their cloud environments and if they have sufficient visibility and governance mechanisms in place.

In summary, this text provides vital insights into cloud security vulnerabilities while offering a roadmap for preventive measures. Security professionals can utilize these insights to enhance their strategies, ensuring that cloud environments are not only operational but securely managed.

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