Cloud workload security

Cloud workload security involves protecting computing resources (VMs, containers, serverless functions) running in the cloud. It includes monitoring workload configurations, ensuring images are free of vulnerabilities, applying runtime defenses (intrusion detection at the container or VM level), and securing the associated identities and permissions.

How does it affect identity security?

Cloud providers offer native security features (AWS GuardDuty, Azure Security Center, Google Cloud Security Command Center) to scan and protect workloads. IAM ties in by defining which workloads can call which APIs or access which data. Zero Trust extends to workloads: a container should only get ephemeral credentials for the actions it needs. Tools like Kubernetes admission controllers or serverless IAM roles enforce minimal privileges for each workload.

Each cloud workload often has its own machine identity or access token (e.g., an EC2 instance profile or a container service account). If these identities are stolen or misconfigured, attackers can pivot within the cloud, exfiltrate data, or disrupt services. Proper workload security ensures that only authorized tasks run, vulnerabilities are patched, and workload credentials remain protected—key factors to preventing adversaries from leveraging compromised workloads to escalate privileges.

Case study

Hackers accessed Accenture’s cloud environment, targeting poorly secured instances. This allowed data theft and attempted extortion. Post-incident analysis suggested stricter workload configuration checks and IAM scoping could have mitigated the impact.

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